Summertime – barbecues, fresh herbs, and sundowners. Simple, right? Take a couple of pieces of meat, cook them to perfection over coals and reach for a delectable sauce… but will it be salsa verde or chimichurri?
Chimichurri is a simple dressing, herbaceous, spicy, and fragrant. Salsa Verde is more briny and punchy, with capers, anchovies, and lemon juice added to the herb and olive-oil base. Chimichurri is based on parsley and cilantro along with chili for a bite, Salsa Verde depends more on parsley and basil as the base herbs. It is easy to mix up the two as both are a vibrant green, are very herby to the eye, and both are cold sauces that add freshness and acidity to your food.
Both sauces are coarse and have the same base, parsley, olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, and of course garlic. Despite this, they are literally oceans apart. However, as these sauces are very similar, they can be used interchangeably, though why would you do that when they are so easy to make?
| Comparator | Chimichurri | Salsa Verde | Salsa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flavor | Herbaceous, spicy | Briny, punchy | Spicy, sweet, tomatoes |
| Color | Vibrant Green | Vibrant Green | Bright Red |
| Origin | Argentina | Near East / Romans | Mexico |
| Ingredients | Olive Oil, cilantro, parsley, oregano, garlic, vinegar, shallots, chili | Olive oil, parsley, basil, capers, anchovy, garlic, onion, lemon juice | Tomatoes, Onions, Chili, garlic, peppers, cilantro, lime juice |
How do you use Salsa Verde?
Salsa Verde is commonly used on tacos and burritos, though it goes equally as well with eggs, fish, lamb chops, chicken, and steak. This sauce can either be used as a marinade to season all meats and vegetables or as a condiment or cold dipping sauce.
How do you use Chimichurri?
Churrascos developed chimichurri for their grilled meats, especially for the tougher, leaner long cuts of meat such as skirt, flank, or hanger steaks, which need freshness and acidity to cut through the meat. Surprisingly, chimichurri works just as well with fish, chicken, pizza, and pasta.
For additional twists, simply combine chimichurri with mayonnaise or hollandaise sauce to create a green, flavor-packed, creamy dip.
What is the difference between red and green salsa?
When comparing these two salsas from the Americas, the difference is simple. Red salsa is based on tomatoes and dried chilies while green salsa relies on tomatillos and green herbs. In general, red salsa is hotter than green salsa. Most of the salsa that you will find are going to be red salsas. These also tend to be less vibrant, going for a tomato and heat profile. Red salsa is often chunkier.
Green salsa is more tart as tomatillos taste more like gooseberries, As these are often pureed, green salsa is thicker and less textured.
What is the difference between Mediterranean and Mexican salsa?
A Mediterranean salsa is typically a raw salsa verde made with anchovies and capers. This provides a very salty, umami flavor to any dish, definitely not suitable for vegetarians or vegans. Mexican salsa is a semi-cooked sauce that is tart and spicier, with tomatillos and chilies, better suited for vegetarians or vegans. The use of a tomatillo base also makes the Mexican salsa very different from a Mediterranean salsa as the tomatillo is a cousin of the tomato, both belonging to the nightshade family.
What is the origin of these sauces?
- Salsa Verde is Mediterranean in origin, initially developed somewhere in the Near East and spread across the Roman Empire as its legions moved about. The use of capers and anchovies is very common in Roman dishes, especially when slightly fermented.
- Mexican Salsa Verde, with its focus on chili and tomatillos, was invented by the Aztecs sometime between 1300 and 1521. There is a North American variant, made popular by Tex-Mex cuisine, especially tacos, which uses far more red tomatoes to the point where it tastes totally different.
- Chimichurri comes from Argentina,a round the 1800s. Legend has it that James McCurry, an Irish immigrant, created this sauce form local ingredients as a replacement for Worcestershire sauce.
What is the difference between chimichurri and gremolata?
Gremolata is a much simpler sauce made with parsley, olive oil, garlic, and lemon zest. Chimichurri has more acidity and spiciness and is more herbaceous, with many more herbs used such as chives and oregano. Gremolata is a much more fragile or delicate sauce that is meant to enhance simpler flavors such as chicken or fish, vegetables, eggs, and salads. Chimichurri is designed to be used with grilled beef, a much stronger flavor.
What ingredients are other green sauces made of?
Other green sauces are:
- Pesto: made from basil, garlic, parmesan, pine nuts, olive oil and garlic
- Green enchilada sauce: made from tomatillos, green chilies, onion, garlic, vinegar and spices
- French sauce verte: mayonnaise, spinach, parely, dill, tarragon, chives, garlic and lemon juice
- Chermoula: Olive oil, garlic, cumin, coriander, parsely, toasted seeds, leomn juice and zest, paprika, red pepper flakes. Ok, not strictly green, but can be close.
When to use Salsa Verde?
Mexican Salsa Verde is used for tortilla dishes: tacos, burritos, enchiladas, tostadas, quesadillas, not to mention chicharron. It goes equally well with chorizo, chicken, refried beans… Basically, any Mexican dish.
Mediterranean Salsa Verde is used with grilled meat, fish, or poultry. These proteins should not be overly spiced, left more to their own devices, with the salsa imparting the flavor.
When to use Chimichurri?
Chimichurri should be used with any grilled meat. The herbs are designed to enhance the flavor of the grilled beef, masking or converting the slightly charred flavor of the beef, while the acidity cuts through any fattiness from the meat. Finally, should the beef be a lean cut, the olive oil adds much-needed fat to the meat, making it more succulent.
Can pesto be used instead of chimichurri?
Pesto and chimichurri should not be used interchangeably. The two flavor profiles are totally different, with pesto more suited for pasta and Italian cooking while chimichurri is used in Argentina, mainly for grilled or barbecued meats, especially beef. Beef tends to be a more robust base flavor, so any sauce used to enhance it needs to be robust and powerful, more on the herby side. Pasta in contrast is more neutral, thus ideal for pesto, which has a delicate flavor.
Can pesto be used instead of Salsa Verde?
If cooking Italian food, then generally this could be done, though salsa verde is a much stronger sauce due to the capers and anchovies. Pesto is a much more delicate flavor, which may be lost in the process.
If cooking Mexican dishes, then pesto cannot be used instead of Mexican Salsa Verde as the basic Mexican flavors will overwhelm the pesto, making it insipid.