I would like to write a love song entitled “Five-Minute Sauces That Make it a Meal.” “It” being whatever else you have to put on the table. Whether it’s a salsa or a savory mayonnaise, a compound butter or a pesto, the key components of a great sauce are flavor, flavor, and flavor. And the results are worth singing about.
This Italian parsley sauce delivers. The basic recipe combines parsley, capers, lemon, a shallot, and garlic. Maybe (hopefully) an anchovy. You can vary it a million ways: give it body with day-old bread, add other soft herbs, swap red onion for the shallot and garlic, spice it up with chile peppers, add nuts or vinegar or fancy pickles. Reduce the oil or leave it out altogether (in which case you’ll have more of a sprinkle than a sauce). Whatever ingredients you choose, chop them up and smooth it all together in a slick of olive oil. Serve over anything.
We often make this sauce when we grill fish or vegetables, but I hear that it also complements meat nicely. Drizzle it over steamed potatoes. Dunk a crusty chunk of bread in it. Whatever you do with it in the end, it will be worth the five minutes it takes to make.
Rustic Italian Parsley Salsa Verde (adapted from Alice Waters’ In the Green Kitchen): Finely chop a nice big handful of parsley (about 1/2 c.). Pound a clove of garlic and 1 Tbsp. rinsed capers to a paste with 2 anchovies (optional). Stir in a minced shallot, the zest of a lemon, the chopped parsley, and 1/2 c. olive oil, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Allow the flavors to blend for half an hour, then taste and adjust seasonings before serving.
Sauces can take an ordinary dish and make it special…I know yours would.
What is also nice is that you can make that sauce ahead of time when you have plenty of time.
I love Italian Salsa Verde! So delish on fish and really fantastic over grilled meats. Love the picture Emmy. Have a great day!
That sauce with black eyed peas brings them to a whole new level. :P
Mmmmm!
Super yum!
Sauces! Yay! I’ve never tried making a sauce with anchovy–sounds super pungent and herbal.
I love sauces like this – so simple but add so much flavor!
Sing it baby!
This sounds wonderful, especially to dunk a piece of bread. Anchovies add a great depth of flavor; I keep a tube of anchovy paste (wild-caught=best flavor) in my fridge to use in sauces and salad dressings. My favorite are white anchovies from the specialty markets, flavorful and slightly sweet.
I can think of many ways to eat this…YUM!
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