Hi Folks

Hi Folks,

On the cooking/fire building camping trip I grilled some venison which seemed to be a hit. It was marinated in chimichurri sauce using a recipe that my buddy, Zoltan Pazmany, gave me -- it's his family's.

The sauce is sort of like sourdough starter, it's passed on from generation to generation.

Some folks expressed an interest in it and asked for the recipe. I can't remember who I promised it to, so I'm sending it to all of you. If you don't want it, just discard it with my apologies, otherwise "buen provecho"!

Ted

CHIMICHURRI SAUCE RECIPE
(Provided by Chef Zoltan Pazmany, The Culinary Gaucho)

Basic Formula (Gaucho approach/peasant level)

Oil and vinegar (50/50), about 10 to 12 cupfuls, total
A bunch of fresh, chopped parsley
A spoonful of red, hot peppers (the chopped stuff)
A bit of oregano
One bay leaf

Advanced Geriatric Formula (Mainly for beef)

Six to eight cupfuls of oil (any oil, except Penzoil 10-30)
Same amount of vinegar (white or red)
One cup of water
One cup of el cheapo red vine (you can make it 1 1/2...)

From here on, all ingredients are soup spoonfuls, unless otherwise noted.

One, ground fresh or dried parsley
One, ground red peppers
One, salt
One, dry chopped onions
One, dry chopped garlic
Half, dried oregano
Half, onion salt
Half, garlic salt
Half, whole black peppers
Half, grounded black or white peppers
Two leaves of bay
If the resulting mixture looks too "solid", add equal parts of oil and vinegar until satisfied about the ensuing viscosity index.

Chimichurri is usually spread over the steaks at about 5 minutes before ready for serving, allowing the mixture to be seared a bit. If ready for it, more chimichurri can be added to the plate, dipping the morsels of steak in it...

Variation A (Some like it hot!)

Add one or two teaspoonfuls of Tabasco sauce

The Fishy Approach

Set aside a sufficient amount of the mixture and add:
The juice of one lemon
Baste the fish (not too long) before grilling

The Chicken Approach

As for the fish, plus:
Two, ketchup
One, mustard
Let the poor bird be done a bit and then apply the explosive with a brush. This will avoid a burning/blackening of the mixture over the skin.

The Oven-Roasted Ham

Just add mustard to the basic mixture.
Let the ham reach the point where the skin will be cut in a Picasso-like fashion, and start spreading the mixture all over two to three times (essentially during the last 15 minutes of cooking).

The Hunter Approach

Double the amount of red wine in the mixture, soak the pieces of nice and lovely animals overnight and then try to grill the stuff.

BUEN PROVECHO!