This smack-you-with-flavor Oil-Free Chimichurri-Gremolata Sauce is wonderfully intense. Yep. It had been too long since I’d posted yet another green sauce.
Hybrid
This sauce isn’t quite a chimichurri because it’s oil-free. It’s not really a straight gremolata either because it’s blended until smooth. It’s a little bit of both. Two fun words, one great sauce.
Enjoy Oil-Free Chimichurri-Gremolata Sauce with
- pasta
- burritos & wraps
- bowls & salads
- Slow-Roasted Zesty Greek Lemon Potatoes & fries
- next week’s post
The blender is best for this recipe
When I’ve made this in my food processor it was more rustic. I like this best when it becomes a mostly smooth sauce, which happens when I make it with my high-speed blender.
Cilantro Substitutions
Does cilantro taste like soap to you? If so, you could sub spinach or just use more parsley in place of the cilantro. Parsley is traditional in chimichurri, but with this recipe you really have to be good with lots of parsley flavor if you go all in with parsley.
Flat Leaf Parsley
I use and recommend flat leaf parsley over the stuff that looks like a garnish you could find on your plate in the 1980’s. It’s a personal preference. The sauce gets smoother if you use flat leaf.
Let’s make Chimichurri-Gremolata Sauce


Add all of the ingredients to a high-powered blender and blend, starting slow and increasing speed.
Stop and scrape the sides as needed while blending. Blend until completely smooth. Taste, then add more cayenne, salt or pepper if desired.
This sauce is really strong, a little goes a long way.

Oil-Free Chimichurri-Gremolata Sauce
Equipment
- high speed blender
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup lightly packed fresh flat leaf parsley
- 1½ cup lightly packed fresh cilantro
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 TBSPs lemon juice
- 1½ TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1½ TBSP balsamic vinegar
- 3 – 4 cloves garlic
- 1/3 cup raw unsalted pumpkin seeds
- 1 TBSP dried oregano
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional, recommended for flavor depth and a kick, more if desired
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a high-powered blender and blend, starting slow and increasing speed. Stop and scrape the sides as needed while blending. Blend until completely smooth. Taste, then add more cayenne, salt or pepper if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
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Recipe adapted from The Vegan 8 by Brandi Doming.
If you like this sauce you might also like
- Cilantro Pumpkin Seed Pesto
- Lemon Kale-Basil Pesto
- Quick Spanish Romesco Sauce
- Oil-Free Vegan Mayo
- Vegan Roasted Garlic Aioli
- Vegan Garlic Alfredo Sauce
- I Can’t Believe It’s Low Oil Hummus
Did you make Oil-Free Chimichurri-Gremolata Sauce?
What did you eat it with? How much cayenne did you use? Tell me about it in the comments section below.
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