This oh-so-flavorful and tangy Moroccan Chermoula Sauce will serve as a healthy addition to your seafood, poultry, meat, and vegetable dishes.
Chermoula Sauce is easily one of the most flavorful and versatile sauces out there. Made with simple ingredients, this wonder-sauce can be used in so many recipes. I use it to marinate meat and fish, and I like to add a spoonful to roasted vegetables and soup.
What is Chermoula?
Chermoula is a flavorful sauce that is popular in North African countries. It pairs well with fish, seafood, meat, poultry, and vegetables. There are many versions of Chermoula Sauce, some are spicier that others, but all very tasty.
The recipe I am sharing today comes from a book called “Step by Step Mediterranean: More than 250 Recipes.” I have tried several other versions of this sauce, but every time, I came back to this one.
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Traditional Chermoula Ingredients
- Fresh Parsley. Flat-leaf Italian parsley works best.
- Fresh Cilantro.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Use good-quality olive oil for the best results and health benefits.
- Lemon juice. Can be substituted with lime juice, if preferred.
- Garlic. Avoid garlic that comes from China, here is more info: Identify Chinese-Grown Garlic
- Ground spices. Cumin, coriander, and paprika.
- Salt.
You might already have paprika on hand, but I am not so sure about the latter two. You can easily find ground cumin in most grocery stores, and ground coriander can be found in larger grocery stores and in Indian stores. If you don’t feel like browsing the stores and looking for these spices, here are some Amazon links for you: ground coriander, ground cumin, paprika.
How to Make Chermoula Sauce
1. Place the cumin, coriander, and paprika in a frying pan and cook over medium heat for 30-60 seconds, or until fragrant.
2. Combine these spices with the rest of the ingredients and pulse in a food processor until smooth.
Is Chermoula Sauce Healthy?
Yes! Especially if you use high-quality extra virgin olive oil, and organic herbs and spices. This recipe is Whole30 compliant, low carb, keto-friendly, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free.
How long will Chermoula Last in the Fridge?
This wonderful sauce stores really well (up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator), so you’ll have plenty of time to eat it all. Keep it in a mason jar covered with a lid.
Can Chermoula be Frozen?
Chermoula Sauce can also be frozen, although I don’t see a reason to since it’s so easy to make it fresh.
Chermoula Sauce Serving Ideas:
With Fish. Spread a spoonful of Chermoula Sauce on top of your favorite fish. Let it marinate for a couple of hours or overnight. Place the marinated fish on a baking dish, and bake until cooked through.
With Shrimps. Sauté the shrimp with olive oil for a couple of minutes. Add some Chermoula Sauce to the skillet, and cook for another minute.
With Chicken. Pan fry or bake the chicken, and top it with fresh Chermoula.
With Couscous. Cook the couscous according to the package instructions and stir in a spoonful of Chermoula.
With Orzo and Feta. Cook the orzo according to the package instructions. Stir in a spoonful of Chermoula and some crumbled feta cheese.
With Tofu. Pan fry the tofu “steak” and top it with a generous amount of Chermoula Sauce.
With Roasted Vegetables. Roast your favorite veggies, and mix them with Chermoula. Check out my Oven Roasted Vegetables recipe!
Make Chermoula Work for You!
As with most homemade recipes, you are free to make some substitutions depending on your taste. If you are not a fan of cilantro, use more parsley instead. Add some extra cayenne pepper to make it spicier, or some extra garlic for that amazing garlicky taste.
You’ll also enjoy these recipes:
Chermoula Sauce Video Tutorial
CHERMOULA SAUCE
Ingredients
- 3 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- a pinch cayenne pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Place the cumin, coriander, and paprika in a frying pan and cook over medium heat for 30-60 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Combine these spices with the rest of the ingredients and pulse in a food processor until smooth.
Very interesting,we need to grab few things from market to make it and thanks for sharing such a good recipe.
Thanks!
I’ve made this sauce many times already. My family loves it!
Thank you so much!
How do you toast the paprika? Do you use it in a powder form?
Thanks!
Hi Matthew! You don’t need to toast the paprika. Just use regular sweet paprika in this recipe. Thanks!
Do you think this would be good without the cilantro (fresh coriander)? It looks a bit like a chimichurri sauce, so it might work. I love the stuff but I live with two ‘cilantro tastes like soap’ people. I can sneak a little in but not a lot. 🙂
Hi Annemarie! Although I’ve never made this sauce without cilantro before, I imagine it will taste great anyways. Have a wonderful day!
I love sauces/pastes made like this one. It is so versatile as you have noted. I will definitely put this one on the to do list!
Thanks, Peter! I am sure you will love it!
Oh my goodness this sauce looks delicious!! I can think of so many things it would be great on.
Thanks, Alicia! The sauce is really awesome. 🙂
Oh how I love food with big flavor! Looking forward to trying this on my sea bass! YUM!
It is really awesome! I hope you’ll give it a try, Felesha!
This sauce sounds amazing, I bet it would be delicious on some skirt steak. I pinned this to my “bucket list” of recipes board 🙂
You are the sweetest, Kate! I just ate the leftovers with my husband. I made pork and veggies (Fajita-style) and mixed it with the sauce. O-M-G! It was simply amazing!
So great to have such a versatile sauce that you can keep for a few weeks – will definitely be trying this one, thanks for sharing! 🙂
Thanks, Emily!
This sauce looks so good – I’m surprised I haven’t yet tried it! It’s full of my favorite flavors, that like you say, seem to go well with all sorts of protein options. Thanks for sharing!
It is very popular in Algerian, Moroccan and Tunisian cuisines! This sauce tastes the best with seafood to my opinion. Thanks for the comment, Patricia!
Glorious recipe and so adaptable. Anything laden with coriander is always a favourite.
Thanks, Helen! I love coriander too!
I love all purpose sauces! This one looks so good and that bright green color is so pretty. I love putting pesto on chicken sandwiches and I bet this would be a great alternative.
It really is, Tracy! Thanks for the comment!
Love the ingredients. Can I use this like I would pesto?
Absolutely, Christine! Have a wonderful day!