Kale Chimichurri: My New Staple

By Melissa Massello, June 26, 2014

A few weekends ago, our friends Tyler & Morgan came for a visit from LA, and we do what we always do: cook up a storm, drink a lot of super tasty yet affordable wines (because they’re my favorite experts), and brainstorm the next billion dollar idea. Dear friends of mine from our days in the Boston Young Entrepreneurs, we can’t help ourselves from talking about big ideas whenever we’re together. And recipes — for success and for being healthy, despite crazy travel schedules and well, life.

With Tyler’s help, I finally broke out and figured out how to use my food processor, which has been sitting brand-new in its box since Christmas, when my sister and her boyfriend gifted me with the biggest wish list item from our wedding registry (which we hadn’t gotten but have always wanted/needed). And now I can’t go a single day without using it, for homemade hummus or quick fruit sorbets or chimichurris, the latter of which I realized can be made with any leafy green or herb — you don’t always have to use parsley!

Tyler had first suggested we make a chimichurri for grilling steaks and cauliflower “steaks,” and I soon realized that chimichurri is the absolute best thing ever if you have a crowd with various dietary restrictions. It’s vegan, it’s nut-free, it’s gluten-free, and it’s dairy-free. Not to mention: insanely delicious. And versatile. I now put that shit on everything. Seriously.

After our friends headed back home, I was reading the May issue of SELF featuring supermodel Alessandra Ambrosio, who told the editors that her go-to BBQ staple is kale chimichurri, so I had to give it a try. I substituted kale for parsley in a classic chimichurri recipe, tinkered a bit, and it turned out amazing. So amazing that I’ve now I’ve been putting it — quite literally — on everything. Grilled chicken. Pasta. Scrambled eggs. Popcorn. Cheese & crackers. I’m pretty sure it’s my new secret weapon in making sure that I get a daily dose of both healthy greens and anti-viral raw garlic. Superfoods FTW.

If you want to try it at home, here’s my dead-simple recipe:

KALE CHIMICHURRI
Yield: About 2 cups (at least 10-12 servings)
Cost: About $4.25 (less than 35 cents/serving)

4 cups of raw organic kale, washed & de-stemmed ($2.50/bunch)
8 cloves whole organic garlic, peeled (about 50 cents)
1/4 organic red onion (about 25 cents)
1/3 cup Greek olive oil (about 75 cents)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar (about 25 cents)
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of chili spice or dash of hot sauce

Add the kale, olive oil and white wine vinegar to the food processor and pulse to combine. Add the garlic, red onion, and spices and then process until you get the desired consistency (it should be about the consistency of pesto), adding a dash more olive oil and/or vinegar if needed. Taste and add additional spices, if necessary.

That’s it! You basically throw everything in the food processor, let it do its magic, toss it in a lidded jar (I use the KORKEN from IKEA, $2.49 each) and it will keep for up to a month in the fridge. Healthy, nutritious, and crowd pleasing. What more could you want for summer grilling? And, supermodels claim to love it, so essentially you’re doing your bikini body no harm. Win, win, win, MAJOR win.