Sicilian Salmoriglio • A Bright Sunny Sauce From Southern Italy!

Originating in sunny southern Italy, Sicilian Salmoriglio is a bright, vibrant lemon herb sauce that's fabulous on chicken, seafood, pork, steak, eggs, veggies... you name it!

If you haven't noticed, we love herby green sauces. Each country seems to have its own vibrant rendition and we're crazy about the way they bring flavorful pizazz to everyday meals. If you check the Café archives you'll find varieties from Peru, Northern Italy, China, Yemen. Mexico plus a unique, delicious Café basil sauce/dressing. And now this fabulous Sicilian Salmoriglio Sauce (pronounced sal-more-EEL-ee-yo)... we've been enjoying it for the past few weeks drizzled on eggs, tomatoes, grilled chicken, as a dipping sauce and so much more!

It's so fresh and vibrant that it seems to shout, "SUMMER!" (although it will bring summery pizazz any time of year).

What is Sicilian Salmoriglio Sauce?

Sicilian Salmoriglio is a lemony marinade/dipping and/or basting sauce popular in southern Italy. In addition to lemon, the ingredient list also includes olive oil, herbs and garlic. The herbs can vary although oregano seems to be the common denominator with parsley, basil and or mint being negotiable.

The website All Things Sicilian says that Salmoriglio is "the most common of the Sicilian dressings and that in Sicily there are many variations to the spelling of the sauce - sammurigghiu, sarmurigghiu and sarmuriggiu".

How to make this delicious Sicilian sauce

Most traditional recipes for salmoriglio call for finely chopping the herbs. My take is to blend all the ingredients in a blender or food processor for a beautiful bright green emulsified sauce. I think it makes a prettier presentation!

I tested this recipe numerous times with varying herbs. Our favorite (the recipe you'll find below) is a combination of Italian parsley, oregano and basil. I have an abundant supply of fresh basil and oregano in my herb garden and almost always have a stash of parsley in the fridge so I can throw this delicious, versatile sauce together whenever the urge strikes!

What to do with Salmoriglio Sauce

What to do with this delicious condiment? Here are a few ideas:

• Drizzle it over fresh tomatoes (pictured above).
  • In the summer, I like to combine beautiful heirloom tomatoes with cherry/grape tomatoes in a variety of sizes and shapes. I salt the tomatoes lightly then let them drain in a colander for 20-30 minutes to concentrate the flavor and let the sauce "🎶 sing 🎶".
• Use it as a basting sauce for roasted meats and poultry. A generous drizzle of Salmoriglio is summery heaven!
• Use it as a dipping sauce for crusty bread or focaccia.
• Spoon it over entrés from the grill.
• Toss it with roasted veggies for a vibrant zip of fresh flavor.
• Use it as a marinade for meats and fish.
• Drizzle it over potatoes.
• Use it as a pasta sauce.
• Serve it with scrambled eggs, omelets, frittatas... it's delicious with any egg dish!

One of our favorite, very satiating summer breakfasts is a cheese and herb omelet and halved cherry tomatoes served with a small bowl of this vibrant sauce - talk about a healthy breakfast worthy of royalty!!

One more idea! We've been enjoying this Salmoriglio sauce with our Italian Grilled Chicken (pictured below). Stay tuned, the recipe is coming on Saturday!

It's a quintessential summer meal. I like to serve it with pasta, a pretty selection of fresh tomatoes and a little bowl of Salmoriglio to drizzle over everything. I've served it to all of the guests that have graced our doors this past month and it always brings rave reviews!

I love having a jar of this Sicilian Salmoriglio stashed in the fridge and I think you will too! It takes everyday meals from ordinary to extraordinarily delicious. It's bright, fresh and beautiful!

Cafe Tips for making this Sicilian Salmoriglio Sauce

• This recipe calls for flat-leaf parsley (aka Italian parsley) leaves. Just the leaves as the stems can be tough and bitter.
• The easiest way to strip the leaves from the stems is to hold the bunch of parsley tightly in your nondominant hand. Then use a large, sharp knife and cut at an angle to shave off the leaves. You'll be left with mostly just the stems in your hand which you can discard.
•  If you don't have the fresh herbs for this Sicilian Salmoriglio sauce growing in your garden, look for organically grown herbs at your grocery or farmer's market.
• I also like to use an organic lemon for this sauce as the recipe calls for both the zest and juice. If you can't get organic, be sure to wash the lemon well before zesting.
• You'll note there are two types of oil used in this salmoriglio sauce. The herbs are combined in a blender with lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic and a neutral-flavored oil. Once everything is well blended, olive oil is added.
• There are two reasons for the two oils:
  • First of all olive oil can take on a bitter flavor if it's blended or processed too much. So we do most of the blending in this recipe with the neutral oil then add the olive oil later.
  • Secondly, olive oil has a strong flavor and can take over and mask the fresh herbs.
• Examples of neutral-flavored oils are avocado, sunflower, safflower, corn, vegetable, grapeseed, peanut and canola oils.
• Feel free to change up the proportions of herbs according to what you have and/or what you prefer.
• This sauce is good for 5-6 days in the refrigerator. It loses some of its vibrant color after 3-4 days but the flavor remains great.
• I have also frozen this sauce with good results. I like to freeze it in smaller containers so I can pull out just enough for a meal.

Thought for the day:

Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
    for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff,
    they comfort me.
Psalm 23:4

What we're listening to for inspiration:

All of My Days

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SUBMIT

Sicilian Salmoriglio Sauce

Chris Scheuer

Originating in sunny southern Italy, Sicilian Salmoriglio is a bright, vibrant lemon herb sauce that's fabulous on chicken, seafood, pork, steak, eggs, veggies... you name it!

5 from 3 votes

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Servings 30 servings

Calories 69

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Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

.5x1x2x

• ½ cup neutral-flavored oil, avocado, sunflower, safflower, grape seed, canola, vegetable and peanut oils will all work
• ¼ cup hot tap water
• finely grated zest from 1 large lemon
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, more to taste
• 2 medium garlic cloves
• 1 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, loosely packed - 20-22g
• ½ cup oregano leaves, loosely packed - 10-12g
• ½ cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed - 10-12g
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon honey
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

 

1. Combine everything except the olive oil in a blender or food processor container. Blend for 2 minutes until nice and smooth. You may need to stop once or twice and use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the container.
2. With the machine off, use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the blender or food processor container.
3. Continue to process again and slowly add the olive oil over 45-60 seconds until nice and smooth.
4. Taste and add more lemon juice or salt, if needed.
5. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Shake well before using.
6. This sauce can also be frozen. Thaw in the refrigerator.

Notes

See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips to ensure success.

If you prefer to use Metric measurements there is a button in each of our recipes, right above the word “Instructions”. Just click that button to toggle to grams, milliliters, etc. If you ever come across one of our recipes that doesn’t have the Metric conversion (some of the older recipes may not), feel free to leave a comment and I will add it.

Makes just under 2 cups of sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 1tablespoonCalories: 69kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 0.2gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.01gSodium: 21mgPotassium: 25mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 0.2gVitamin A: 204IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 18mgIron: 0.5mg

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Course: Condiment, Sauce

Cuisine: Italian, Italian-Inspired