This keto chimichurri sauce is a beautiful, silky, oil-based condiment full of fresh herbs and garlic. Use it as a marinade and/or a dipping sauce to level up your meats and veggies!
While this keto chimichurri sauce can be made any time of the year, it's perfect to make in the summertime when fresh parsley and cilantro are abundant and people are grilling outside.
Use the chimichurri as a marinade, setting some aside to spoon over your grilled chicken, steak, veggies, or seafood when serving to take your dish to the next level of flavor.
Or if you're looking for more summertime favorites, I think you'll love these Keto Pesto, Greek Chicken, Tzatziki, and Greek Salad recipes!
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What is chimichurri?
This low-carb chimichurri is an uncooked oil-based herb sauce that goes perfect with grilled meats.
It is typically found in Argentinian and Uruguayan cuisines and typically consists of finely chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, oregano, and red wine vinegar.
It's also super healthy! Full of fresh herbs, spices, and healthy fats, it fits into a number of diets. It is naturally:
- gluten-free
- dairy-free
- whole30
- keto
- low-carb
- vegan
- paleo
- nut-free
Ingredients
Here are the simple ingredients you will need:
- Parsley - Be sure to use fresh, the dried variety won't work in this recipe!
- Cilantro - Optional, not a traditional ingredient but adds lots of flavors if you are a fan of cilantro!
- Sea Salt - Enhances flavor. I always add a bit more salt before serving because I like mine extra salty!
- Garlic - Most recipes use 2-4 cloves but I use 8 because I love lots and lots of garlic! Feel free to reduce it if you would like a milder garlic taste.
- Red Wine Vinegar - This works best for keto chimichurri. You can substitute lemon juice but I don't recommend balsamic or white wine.
- Lime Juice - Optional, adds additional flavor and acidity.
- Oregano - Seasoning, use fresh or dried.
- Red Pepper or Red Pepper Flakes - Optional, adds slight heat and depth of flavor.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Can substitute with avocado oil.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Only requiring 2 steps, this keto sauce is super-easy!! Here are the instructions:
Step #1: To the bowl of a food processor, add all of the ingredients except the oil. Pulse until finely chopped but not smooth.
Step #2: Transfer to a bowl and stir in the oil. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving so the flavors can soak into the oil. Serve at room temperature.
💭Tip: Be careful not to over-process the herbs into a smooth paste. This is meant to be a loose, oil-based sauce.
Marinade
This recipe is perfect to use as a marinade for chicken, steak, veggies, or fish and/or used as a baste when grilling or barbecuing. The low-carb sauce makes enough marinade for 4 medium-sized chicken breasts or steaks with some leftover for dipping.
When using as a marinade, simply add the defrosted meat to a large bowl or resealable baggie, then coat well with about half to three-quarters of the marinade. If needed, add a little bit of extra oil to get all of the meat coated.
Set the rest of the sauce aside for serving.
Here are the various marinating times:
- Chicken: Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes to 12 hours. Ideally 3 to 6 hours. Cook to 165 degrees. I prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken thighs and then cook them on the stove or grill.
- Steak: Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes up to 8 hours. When using tougher cuts, such as flank steak or skirt steak, marinate for 6 to 7 hours. For medium-rare cook from 130-135 degrees, for medium cook from 135 -145 degrees. For medium-well cook 145-150 degrees, for well-done cook 150-160 degrees. Allow to rest 5 to 10 minutes before cutting.
- Salmon: Marinate in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes. While I haven't tried it, I think this keto salmon cooking method would work well. Just cook the marinated salmon as directed and omit the sweet and spicy glaze.
- Shrimp: Marinate in the fridge for 15 minutes. Grill until pink and opaque, or until just cooked through.
- Pork Chops: Marinate in the fridge for 1 to 12 hours. Ideally 6 to 8 hours. Cook to 145 degrees.
- Vegetables: Marinate for 30 minutes. Cook until tender.
How to serve
For a complete meal, serve your marinated and cooked meat and veggies with some of your reserved sauce for dipping. Then, serve with a salad (this Mexican Keto Cauliflower Rice Salad from My Life Cookbook would be good!) and keto dinner rolls.
And if you want to be extra fancy, whip up one of these keto desserts to go with dinner!
Variations
- Heat - Increase or decrease the red pepper flakes to adjust the heat.
- Cilantro - If you don't like cilantro, feel free to leave it out!
- Salt - Be sure to taste and adjust the salt before serving. I always add extra sea salt because I like my chimichurri extra salty!
- Garlic - Most recipes use 2-4 cloves of garlic but I use 8 because I love lots and lots of garlic! Feel free to reduce the garlic if you would like a milder garlic taste.
Frequently asked questions
No, you don't! You can finely chop the ingredients with a knife instead of using a food processor.
Yes, chimichurri is naturally keto-friendly coming in at 1 net carb per serving. And while homemade chimichurri is made with olive oil or avocado oil, sometimes the store-bought varieties are made with undesirable oils and hidden ingredients making them "dirty keto".
Storage
- Store: Leftovers can be stored covered in the fridge for 3 to 5 days.
- Freeze: Freeze keto chimichurri in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, pop out and store in a freezer-safe container for 1 to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before using.
- Meal Prep: Freeze marinated meat in a freezer-safe container. Thaw in the fridge overnight before cooking.
Top tips
- Serve at room temperature.
- Try to remove as many stems as possible from the parsley and cilantro so you're mainly just using the leaves.
- The lime juice and cilantro are not authentic ingredients and are optional.
If you've tried this keto chimichurri recipe, please let me know what you think in the comments below 👇
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📖 Recipe
Keto Chimichurri Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 Bunch Parsley - stems trimmed off and discarded
- ½ Bunch Cilantro - optional, stems trimmed off and discarded
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Dried Oregano - or 3 Tablespoons chopped, fresh oregano
- 8 Cloves Garlic - chopped
- 1 teaspoon Sea Salt - + more as needed
- ¼ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh Lime Juice - about 1 lime
- 1-2 teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes - optional. OR 1 small red pepper, remove seeds and veins for less heat
- ½ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil Or Avocado Oil
Instructions
- Add the parsley, cilantro, oregano, garlic, sea salt, red wine vinegar, red chili or red pepper flakes, and lime juice to the bowl of a food processor. Process until everything is very finely chopped, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Be careful not to overprocess into a paste. Note: If you don't have a food processor, finely chop the parsley, cilantro, red chili (if using), and garlic with a knife. Then, add to a bowl with the remaining ingredients.
- Transfer to a bowl and stir in the olive oil or avocado oil. Allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes so the oil can absorb the flavor.
- Use it as a marinade and/or use it to baste meats and veggies when grilling or barbecuing, setting some aside. Taste and add more salt as needed to the reserved sauce (I always add an extra ½ tsp. because I like it really salty!) and spoon over your meats and veggies when serving.
Add Your Own Notes
Notes
- Serve at room temperature.
- Try to remove as many stems as possible from the parsley and cilantro so you're mainly just using the leaves.
- The lime juice and cilantro are not authentic ingredients and are optional.
- Most recipes use 2-4 cloves of garlic but I use 8 because I love lots and lots of garlic! Feel free to reduce the garlic if you would like a milder garlic taste.
- See the post above for marinating instructions and times.
- Store: Leftovers can be stored covered in the fridge for 3 to 5 days.
- Freeze: Freeze keto chimichurri in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, pop out and store in a freezer-safe container for 1 to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before using.
- Meal Prep: Freeze marinated meat in a freezer-safe container. Thaw in the fridge overnight before cooking.
Nutrition
NET CARBS = Total Carbs - Fiber - Allulose - Xylitol
Nutritional information is approximate and may vary. Sugar alcohols, xylitol, and allulose are included in the total carbs and fiber.
Looking for more information on the keto diet? Check out my
Food safety
Here are some food safety tips to keep in mind when cooking meat:
- Be sure to set some sauce aside for dipping before marinating. You never want to use the leftover marinade for dipping because it has been contaminated with raw meat.
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Be sure to cook the meat to the minimum temperature to prevent sickness.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!