Persillade
on Sep 23, 2018, Updated Jun 22, 2025
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Persillade is a classic French herb sauce made with parsley, garlic, and olive oil – bright, bold, and perfect for meats, veggies, or potatoes.
Persillade is a classic French herb-garlic mixture that adds bold, fresh flavor to everything from meats and vegetables to soups and sauces. Made with just a few simple ingredients – fresh parsley, garlic, and olive oil — often with a splash of vinegar or citrus — this vibrant condiment comes together in minutes.
Use it as a finishing touch for roasted potatoes, grilled steaks, or sautéed mushrooms for an instant boost of flavor and brightness. Quick, versatile, and packed with punch, persillade is a must-have in your flavor tool kit.
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I add lemon juice, thyme, capers, and scallions (green onions) to my persillade sauce recipe, plus some red pepper flakes for a little kick. Drizzle some over grilled or roasted vegetables. Mash some into a baked potato. Toss some cooked rice or grains with it. Persillade garlic bread is one of my favorite uses for this condiment.
Any recipe or dish you would think to use pesto, gremolata, or chimichurri sauce, this fresh parsley sauce works.
What's In This Post?
What Is Persillade?
Persillade is, at its base, a mixture of fresh parsley and garlic, a fresh and vibrant green sauce that is used as a condiment for all kinds of dishes, from sautéed shrimp to green beans to pan-seared pork chops. The word is French, and it comes from the French word for parsley, which is persil. The flavor is bright and fresh and herbal, and persillade perks up whatever food it’s added to.
Parsley is always the main ingredient of persillade; there is always garlic, and usually extra-virgin olive oil and salt. Other herbs might be added, such as tarragon and thyme, and sometimes anchovies, capers, or cornichon pickles. Lemon is another frequently added ingredient.
Persillade with a Mortar and Pestle
Like many other traditional, uncooked sauces, this is traditionally made with a mortar and pestle. I have a mortar and pestle, but more often than not, I use my food processor. But if you have a mortar and pestle, and the desire and the forearm strength to get to it, go get ‘em. You’ll have a more authentic texture, and the ingredients will integrate better.
How to Make Persillade
- Blend the produce: Place the parsley, scallions, garlic, thyme, capers, and lemon juice and zest into a food processor and pulse until chopped and well combined.
- Add oil and season: With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil, and let the motor run until it is nicely combined with a fairly smooth consistency. Add the pepper flakes, if using, and season with salt and pepper.
Variations
- Skip the capers.
- Skip the thyme.
- Add 2 anchovy filets instead of the capers.
- Skip the lemon juice and zest.
- Omit the red pepper flakes.
- Skip the green onions and add 1another couple of teaspoons of finely minced garlic.
What to Serve With Persillade
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Persillade
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1 cup sliced scallions
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (optional)
- 1 tablespoon capers (rinsed)
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Place the parsley, scallions, garlic, thyme (if using), capers, and lemon juice and zest into a food processor and pulse until chopped and well combined.
- With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil, and let the motor run until it is nicely combined. Add the pepper flakes (if using), and season with salt and pepper.
Notes
Storage
Persillade will keep in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for at least 5 days. You can freeze persillade by putting it into a freezer-proof zip-top bag, pressing out the excess air, then sealing it. Label the bag, freeze, then break off pieces as you need them for cooking. Let it defrost if using it as a garnish, but if added to soup or another hot dish, you can add it frozen.Nutrition
More Condiment Recipes
Once you start to realize what happens when you have one or two or maybe even three little containers of versatile condiments in your fridge, the options start to bloom and mushroom. Whipped Ricotta is one such condiment. Check it out, and see how many ways it will improve your life. Sriracha Sauce is another. Don’t even get me started on vinaigrettes. Also try:
FAQs
Classic French persillade is a simpler sauce, really highlighting the parsley and a bit of raw garlic. Argentinean chimichurri sauce usually packs a bit more punch with some vinegar, red pepper flakes, oregano, and perhaps cilantro added.
Gremolata is an Italian-based parsley condiment, and usually features lemon zest in the mix, often along with other herbs, while persillade focuses on parsley and only occasionally includes citrus. This persillade recipe does include citrus and some other additional ingredients.
