Gremolata Recipe
This delicious homemade gremolata is a classic garnish I make with finely minced Italian flat leaf parsley, lemon zest, and garlic. Three ingredients, 10 minutes, and the brightest, most garlicky finish I put on my osso buco, roasted meats, and pasta.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch finely minced fresh flat leaf parsley
- Zest of 1 large lemon
- 1 finely minced garlic clove
Instructions
- Add the chopped parsley, lemon zest, and finely minced garlic to a small bowl.
- Mix with a spoon until combined and chill or serve.
Notes
To achieve the most delicious gremolata, I highly recommend mincing the parsley finer than seems reasonable, and then mincing it again. Why? The answer is simple: gremolata that isn't minced finely enough sits on top of the food as a pile of chopped herbs instead of blending into it, and a spoonful of raw garlic chunks over a perfect osso buco is one of the mistakes I see home cooks make over and over again. So please, hear me out on this one, and I promise you'll end up with the best gremolata you've ever imagined.
Use the stems on the parsley: Most of the flavor in flat-leaf parsley is concentrated in the stems, so mince them right along with the leaves instead of throwing them out.
The garnish is better the next day: Fresh gremolata is fine right out of the bowl, but a few hours in the fridge or a full day of resting lets the parsley soften into the lemon oil and the garlic mellow into the herbs. If there is time to make it ahead, do.
Anchovy is a traditional add: A single finely minced anchovy fillet folded in adds a hit of salty umami depth that takes the gremolata closer to a classical Italian finishing sauce. Skip it if the crowd is anti-anchovy, but a fillet in a whole bowl of gremolata is undetectable as fish.
Freeze in silicone trays for quick access: A batch of gremolata portioned into a silicone ice cube tray and frozen keeps for a couple months and thaws in about 20 minutes on the counter. One cube dropped into a pot of white beans or a bowl of pasta gives a weeknight dinner a real Italian finish. I can't recommend this enough!
Make-Ahead: You can make this up to 3 days ahead of time. Simply keep it covered in the refrigerator.
How to Store: I cover the bowl or transfer the gremolata into a small sealed container and keep it in the fridge for up to a week. The parsley will darken a touch after a few days but the flavor holds fine.
How to Freeze: I portion leftover gremolata into a silicone ice cube tray, freeze until solid, then pop the cubes into a labeled freezer bag for up to 2 months.
Nutrition
Calories: 1kcalCarbohydrates: 0.1gProtein: 0.03gFat: 0.003gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.001gSodium: 0.1mgPotassium: 2mgFiber: 0.01gSugar: 0.01gVitamin A: 11IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 1mgIron: 0.01mg