Each country in Latin America has a national salsa, or sauce. In Argentina, it’s chimichurri (chih-mee-CHOO-ree).

Chimichurri sauce is made of finely chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, white or red vinegar, and red pepper flakes. Oregano can be added. Cilantro can replace parsley in some regions; vegetable oil can replace the olive oil.

The original sauce is green from the parsley; later red versions add tomatoes, red bell peppers and/or hot chiles.

In beef-endowed Argentina, chimichurri is the steak sauce of choice, also used with other beef-based dishes and any grilled meats.

A recipe for chimichurri sauce follows and the recipe after that. Also see below:

How to create your signature chimichurri sauce.

The many ways to use chimichurri sauce.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

As one story goes, the name evolved from “Jimmy McCurry,” an Irishman who developed the recipe in Argentina. However, there is no written documentation of this.

Purportedly, McCurry was sympathetic to the cause of Argentine independence in the 19th century and served in a troop under the command of General Jasson Ospina. The sauce was popular but “Jimmy McCurry” was difficult for Argentineans to say, so it became “chimichurri” sauce (pronounced chimmy CHOO-ree).
 
Another theory is that the name comes from the Basque settlers who arrived in Argentina in the 19th century. According to grilling expert Steve Raichlen, the name of the sauce comes from the Basque term tximitxurri, loosely translated as “a mixture of several things in no particular order.” (Source: Raichlen, Steven, “Planet Barbecue!,” Workman Publishing Company. p. 159)

It’s easy to make chimichurri in a blender or food processor; but purists may want to make it the original way, with a mortar and pestle. We find that pesto made this way tastes better than food processor pesto, even when the exact same ingredients are used.

[2] Enjoy chimichurri with any grilled meat, lamb (in photo), pork, poultry, or fish (photo © D’Artagnan).

Ideally, make the chimichurri sauce a day in advance to allow the flavors to meld. The sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Ingredients For 1-1/2 Cups

 
Preparation

1. PLACE the parsley, garlic, oregano, vinegar, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor, fitted with a blade attachment. Process until finely chopped, stopping and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed, about 1 minute in total.

2. ADD the oil in a steady stream, with the motor running. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and pulse a few times to combine.

3. TRANSFER the sauce to an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day, allowing the flavors to meld. Stir, taste and adjust seasonings before serving.
 

[3] This chimichurri sauce has been made elegant by puréeing. It’s served with a vegetarian dish, Grilled Halloumi And trumpet Mushrooms (photo © Gardenia Restaurant | NYC).

You can adding or substitute other ingredients to create a signature chimichurri:

Like Italy’s pesto, chimichurri is a bright green, herb-based, versatile sauce that you can use with:

 
Other ideas? Post them here.
 
 
> SEE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SALSA IN OUR SALSA GLOSSARY.

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Perhaps that’s why Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, created in 1938 to season the prime rib served at Lawry’s restaurant in Beverly Hills, has remained a prominent fixture on the spice rack in many households.

The blend of salt, herbs and spices (garlic, onion, paprika and turmeric, plus sugar—here’s the copycat Lawry’s Seasoned Salt Recipe) adds more flavor than salt alone.

Home cooks found that it worked on everything, from breakfast eggs to any grain, protein, starch or vegetable.
 
BUYING FLAVORED SALTS

Over the last decade, numerous specialty food artisans—Urban Accents, Saltworks and quite a few other—have created collections of seasoned salts, with a base of sea salt. Even McCormick has joined in, with 11 McCormick sea salt grinders from Chipotle to Sweet Onion.

Casina Rossa seasoned sea salts from
Italy—Porcini, Saffron, Edible Flowers,
and others, are available from Seasoned
Sea Salts. Photo by Naheed Choudhry |
THE NIBBLE.

The Fusion line of sea salts from Saltworks goes farther, with gourmet salts such as Black Truffle, Espresso, Ginger, Lemon, Lime, Maple, Matcha, Merlot, Sriracha, Sundried Tomato, Vanilla and White Truffle.

But at $15 or so per 3.5-ounce jar (more for pricier items like porcini and truffle), you might want to try blending your own with what you have on hand.

We’re addicted to truffle salts, and to Casa Rossa’s saffron salt. A pinch of salt lets us enjoy these two favorite flavors in everything from scrambled eggs to mashed potatoes and vinaigrette.

Unfortunately for us, it’s so costly to purchase dried saffron or truffles—two of the priciest ingredients in the world—that there’s no money to be saved by blending our own.

But there’s much more to blend than saffron and truffles.

It takes just five minutes to blend salt, herbs and spices in a spice grinder. You can make them on an ad hoc basis, or make larger batches to store and use as needed.

Pick A Salt

If you don’t have sea salt on hand, start with kosher salt or table salt. After you get the hang of blending, you can try more exotic salts, such as:

 
See our Salt Glossary for the different types of salts.
 
Pick Your Seasonings

 
Then, decide on ratios: which flavors do you want to be dominant, which flavors should be background hints.

Start with twice as much salt as other flavors, and even less of hot flavors. You may find, after making different blends, that you’re using less salt and more herbs/spices.
 
RECIPE: SAMPLE FLAVORED SALT BLEND

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir until well-combined. Working in batches, add the blend to a spice grinder and process into a fine powder. If you don’t have a spice blender, you can try a regular blender.

2. STORE the salt in an airtight container. Store away from heat and light (as all herbs and spices should be stored!).
 
If you want to make other blends but already have too much of homemade seasoned salt on hand, give it as gifts!
  

There are only a few days left of this year’s National Ice Cream Month. Here’s something a bit off the beaten track: an ice cream trifle. Is it a form of ice cream sundae or a variation of ice cream cake? Make it and take a vote.

Trifle is an English dessert dish made from layers of custard, diced fruit, syrup or fruit juice and cubes of sponge cake, topped with whipped cream. It was traditionally served in a footed glass bowl.

In QVC chef David Venable’s recipe, below, ice cream bars replace the custard and chocolate-covered pretzels replace the fruit and caramel takes over for the syrup.

Adapt the recipe as you like, for example, trading the pretzels for sliced strawberries, and exchanging the chocolate cake for pound cake or ladyfingers. Instead of caramel, we tried a version with custard sauce (crème anglaise).

David used Klondike bars in this recipe, easy to chop because there’s no stick. We prefer Magnum ice cream bars: better quality ice cream and chocolate coating, more flavor choices.

Ingredients

1. CUBE the cake first, then the ice cream bars. If using a fresh cake, freeze it first; it will be easier to cut. Freeze the cubes separately until ready to assemble.

2. CRUSH the chocolate-covered pretzels gently into smaller pieces. Don’t over-crush—you want small pieces, not dust. Reserve 2 ounces to decorate the top of the trifle.

3. PLACE 1/3 of the chocolate cake squares into a large trifle dish. Place 1/3 of the ice cream bar cubes on top, followed by 1/3 of the crushed chocolate-covered pretzels. Drizzle 1/4 of the caramel sauce over the pretzels and top with a 1/3 of the whipped cream. Repeat this order two more times, finishing with the whipped cream.

4. ADD the rest of the caramel sauce and top with the reserved crushed chocolate-covered pretzels. Freeze immediately. David suggests that before serving, you should let the trifle sit at room temperature for 3–4 minutes so the cake can thaw slightly. We like eating frozen cake (especially in small cubes), and brought the trifle straight to the table.

If the kernels are removed from the corn and served in a bowl, the dish is called esquites. These recipes are also made at home, where corn holders often replace the stick.

(In our household, fingers replace the corn holders and the stick.)

Corn on a stick has become popular in the U.S. at state fairs, and as street food in areas as disperse as Chicago and Texas.

Elote is the word for corn in the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs (the Spanish word for corn is maíz).

The cooked corn is served with a range of condiments: butter, cotija cheese (and/or feta in the U.S.), chili powder, lemon or lime juice, mayonnaise, sour cream (crema in Mexico) and salt. Popular combinations include chili powder and lime juice in Mexico, butter and cheese in the U.S.

In some areas of Mexico, the cooked kernels are cut into a bowl, topped with the same condiments and eaten with a spoon.

In addition to conventional preparations and adaptations like the Cashew Elote recipe below, the seasonings and garnishes are adaptable to other cuisines, for example:

 
 
CORN PORN

Our colleague Hannah Kaminsky created what she calls “corn porn.”

“The simplest elements of a meal,” says Hannah, “those unassuming side dishes that are all too often overshadowed by flashier, more expensive or more complex main dishes, serve up far more nuance than they’re given credit for. A perfect example of this is the humble ear of corn.

“As summer marches on and those golden yellow kernels swell larger, juicier and sweeter underneath the hot sun, truly sumptuous fresh corn is a rare treat despite its ubiquity. A whole world of flavor can be found within those pale green husks, just beyond the tangled forest of corn silk, if only one knows how coax it out.

“Finesse is the key to letting such a pared-down dish shine, accentuating the inherent flavor of is base ingredients without covering them up with a heavy-handed smattering of seasonings. Elote, served up either straight on the cob or sheared off and mixed up in the trolelotes presentation, is worth getting excited about.”
ízquitl, toasted corn.)
 
This variation is called esquites (or ezquites—photo #2) in southern and central Mexico, and troles or trolelotes in the north. The word esquites comes from the Nahuatl word ízquitl, which is pronounced iz-KEE-tay and means toasted corn.
 
 
CORN PORN

Our colleague Hannah Kaminsky created what she calls “corn porn.”

“The simplest elements of a meal,” says Hannah, “those unassuming side dishes that are all too often overshadowed by flashier, more expensive or more complex main dishes, serve up far more nuance than they’re given credit for. A perfect example of this is the humble ear of corn.

[5] Cilantro and lime, accents that provide part of the signature flavor (photo © Lindsay Moe | Unsplash).

RECIPE: ELOTE OR ESQUITES WITH CASHEW SAUCE

Don’t want cashew sauce? Load up on the original condiments: butter, cotija cheese (substitute feta or use both), chili powder, lemon or lime juice, mayonnaise and sour cream.

Ingredients For 6-8 Servings

 
Preparation

1. SOAK the cashews for 3 hours and thoroughly drain them.

2. MAKE the sauce. Place the cashews, garlic and lime juice in a food processor and pulse to combine. Pause to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula so that the nuts are fairly well broken down. Add the nutritional yeast, agave, paprika, cayenne and salt, pulsing to incorporate.

3. DRIZZLE in the water, allowing the motor to run slowly to blend thoroughly. The sauce should still be a bit coarse in texture, and the small pieces of cashew that remain will emulate the traditional curds of cotija cheese.

5. CUT the kernels off the corn cobs and place them in a large bowl. Pour the cashew sauce on top and mix thoroughly. Add the fresh cilantro, tossing to combine. Divide the corn into 6 to 8 cups or bowls and top with a sprinkle of chili powder.
 

VARIATION: “JAPANESE ELOTE”

Here’s a fusion food: Mexican elote made with Japanese condiments. For four ears of corn, mix:

 
Preparation

1. MIX the butter and miso paste and slather it on the hot corn. Sprinkle each ear with chives and shichimi togarashi. Serve with lime wedges.
  

The practice of decorating eggshells is ancient, predating Christianity. Engraved ostrich eggs found in Africa date back 60,000 years. Decorated ostrich eggs, also replicated in gold and silver, have been found in 5,000-year-old graves in Egypt and Sumeria. [Source]

The Christian custom of decorating eggs at Easter has been traced to the early Christians of Mesopotamia, sometime after 100 B.C.E.

But you don’t need a religious context to decorate eggs. On a hot summer day, it’s a quiet activity that can be done while in the shade—or in the air conditioning. For summer themes, think beach, birds, blue sky, butterflies, flowers and yes, palm trees.

Cook a batch of eggs and let family and friends paint away. Take a vote afterward and give a prize for the “people’s choice.”

Then, you can peel the eggs for protein-rich snacking, or turn them into sliced egg sandwiches or egg salad.

You don’t have to hard-boil the eggs, either.

You can keep raw painted egs as art by removing the innards. Simply pierce each end of the shell with a thick sewing needle. Then, blow strongly on one of the holes. The contents will be expelled through the other hole.
 
WANT TO HARD-BOIL EGGS MORE EASILY?

Here are tips on how to make hard boiled eggs from the American Egg Board.