Gremolata is completely new to me (I know, I’m very late to the game on this one) and recently I have been dressing almost everything with my new mixed herb and zesty lemon gremolata. I can put together a meal for both myself and my son (usually as bland as sand to accommodate a 5 year olds palate) and then to my plate add my dressing or sauce. It works really well. We are both eating the same thing (which I think is really important with family meals) and we both enjoy it. Plus every so often Alex asks to try my sauce which I find encouraging, even if his reaction afterwards is not.
This sauce can boost flavour on so many dishes. Grilled meat, pasta, soup and salads. It is made with only a few really simple ingredients and can really bring a dish alive. The best part is, it takes minutes to make and keeps for up to a week in the fridge. I use Olive oil to make it more of a sauce and I love it drizzled over grilled chicken, vegetables and rice dishes
I gather that traditionally it is meant to be dryer and used more as a garnish than sauce, but with the addition of olive oil, you get a fabulously fragrant sauce. Ideally the ingredients are hand chopped and then mixed together, but honestly, I like to be able to throw everything in a small blender and give it a whizz. It’s not laziness; it is just my personal preference as a busy mom.
MIXED HERB AND ZESTY LEMON GREMOLATA
- A large handful of fresh herbs, I use curly parsley, dill and basil
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- zest and juice of a large ripe lemon
- 100 ml good olive oil
- salt and pepper
THE HOW
You can chop the herbs finely, crush the garlic, zest and then juice the lemon and pop in a bowl with the olive oil, season with salt and pepper and mix or you can simply pop everything into a mini blender and give it a gentle blitz until the herbs are just chopped.
Don’t go too far with mixing it in a processor, or you might end up with mush.
Kitchen Feasts 