• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Forager | Chef
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Interviews
  • Partnerships
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Interviews
  • Partnerships
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • About
    • Recipes
    • Interviews
    • Partnerships
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Wild Herbs and Spices

    Chimichurri with Bee Balm and Ramp Leaves

    Published: May 27, 2013 Modified: Dec 9, 2022 Author: Alan Bergo

    Jump to Recipe

    For a solid year, I had the pleasure of having a sous chef who was from Argentina. I brought him on since he had some good experience and I thought that his view of food and style could be a great help to the restaurant.

    Bergamot-Ramp Chimichurri

    I remember one day a VIP customer came in and requested some chimichurri to go with his steak. I don't usually cater to peoples tastes for condiments made on the spot since that's a pain in the ass, but this time I made an exception.   This isn't his recipe, but I was channeling him when I made it.

    Bergamot-Ramp Chimichurri

    Herb and oil based sauces like this are some of my favorite, especially when days with warm weather are on the horizon. They're easy to make, and don't even require heat, just chop some stuff up, season it, toss in a little oil and call it a day.

    Bergamot-Ramp Chimichurri

    Chimichurri is the classic Argentinian condiment for grilled meat, typically made with parsley, garlic, oil, chili, vinegar, and other things depending on who you ask. Our version here is a little different, using ramps instead of the garlic, and wild bee balm instead of the dried oregano you sometimes find. It's a fun variation, and easily modified. 

    How to use 

    I like keeping sauces like this in the fridge so I can pull them out and have them ready to go. Here's a few ideas on how I use it. It's the best spooned over grilled meats and vegetables, but it's also good with fish, especially grilled or roasted. 

    Since the sauce is oil-based, it's good to use it on something that isn't very oily itself. For example, putting it on fried chicken would be too heavy, but grilled chicken would love to have some spooned on top. 

    100% wild variations

    The basic sauce here includes parsley, but you could add a few other greens in it's place to make an all-wild version. American mitsuba (Cryptotaenia canadensis) would be my first choice. Other soft, tender greens like chickweed tips could also be used. 

    Bergamot-Ramp Chimichurri
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    No ratings yet

    Chimichurri with Bee Balm and Ramp Leaves

    Prep Time25 minutes mins
    Course: Appetizer, Snack
    Cuisine: Argentinian
    Keyword: Bergamot, Chimmichurri, Ramp Leaves
    Author: Alan Bergo

    Ingredients

    • 1 bunch Italian parsley stems removed to yield roughly 2 lightly packed cups
    • ¼ cup fresh bee balm leaves OR 1 tablespoon dried bee balm crumbled, stems removed
    • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more to taste
    • 10 small ramps with leaves or 5 large ramps
    • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt or more to taste
    • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil you can substitute another oil if you like
    • 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
    • 2 Tablespoons cold water

    Instructions

    • Coarsely chop the ramp bulbs and leaves and the parsley, then put with the remaining ingredients except the oil into the bowl of a food processor.
    • Blend the mixture, drizzling in the oil, until the sauce is smooth-ish and homogenous.
    • Taste the seasoning and adjust as needed for acid, salt, and spiciness until the sauce tastes good to you.
    • Transfer it to a container like a mason jar and reserve until needed. The sauce will keep for a couple days in the fridge, but will have the best color the day it's made.

    Notes

    A basic method, you can play around and make it your own or adjust to your taste.
    « Crunchy Pickled Fiddlehead Ferns
    Wild Mushroom Confit »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dan

      May 27, 2016 at 5:56 pm

      So... was your VIP customer pleased? Enquiring minds want to know.

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        June 03, 2016 at 11:42 pm

        Yes.

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Chef Alan Bergo

    HI, I'm Alan: James Beard Award-winning Chef, Author, Show Host and Forager. I've been writing about cooking wild food here for over a decade. Let me show you why foraging is the most delicious thing you'll ever do.

    More about me →

    Get The Book

    the forager chef's book of flora
    The Forager Chefs Book of Flora

    As Seen On

    An image showing many different brands and media companies forager chef alan bergo has worked with.

    Footer

    Privacy

    Subscribe

    Be the first to hear what I'm doing

    Contact

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2025 Forager | Chef LLC® Accessibility Statement

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required