Persillade

Parsley in French is persil, so it’s not surprising that persillade is a parsley sauce, combining the freshness of parsley, with butter, garlic, and lemon. It is also called Sauce Persil.

Personally, I love all of the green sauces, like pesto, gremolata, and chimichurri, so I knew I’d love persillade.

I was inspired to make it because of my friend Stéphane’s blog My French Heaven, specifically the post is entitled “The Power of Love, Laughter, and Persillade.” (It’s one of my favorites!)

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On that post he has a recipe for grilled scallops with persillade, but it’s a wonderful addition to not only seafood but meat and poultry as well. I’m making it for roast lamb.

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Parsley, I feel is really an underused and appreciated herb, having filled the role in fine cuisine as primarily a decoration. But I use it in just about everything – vinaigrettes, pestos, marinades, and so forth.

There are many variations for persillade, I discovered. What I’ve noticed mostly is the use of olive oil instead of butter, and either lemon zest, lemon juice, or no lemon. But the parsley and garlic are always clearly the main players.

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Here’s what I did.

Persillade

1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, rinsed, patted dry
3-4 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 ounces unsalted butter
Squeeze of lemon

Place the parsley and garlic in a food processor and process. Add 3 ounces of melted butter and the salt and process, but don’t over process. You want to see the parsley and garlic bits.

Place the remaining butter in a small saucepan and melt it over medium heat. Stir in the persillade and give the mixture a good stir, and once you smell the garlic, remove the saucepan from the heat and add a squeeze of lemon.

Serve immediately so the butter stays warm and melted. It’s challenging to keep the parsley and garlic in suspension in the butter, so the persillade ends up looking like a green blob.

With scallops and shrimp, they can be tossed in the persillade. I served the persillade with lamb slices and roasted tomatoes.

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Stéphane claims that no one really loves escargots. It’s all about the persillade. He might be right!

By Published On: June 9th, 201651 Comments on Persillade

About the Author: Chef Mimi

As a self-taught home cook, with many years in the culinary profession, I am passionate about all things food-related. Especially eating!

51 Comments

  1. apuginthekitchen June 9, 2016 at 9:05 AM - Reply

    Love persillade. Such a simple sauce with huge flavor. Stephane is correct I think it’s all about the persillade not the escargot.

    • chef mimi June 9, 2016 at 9:13 AM - Reply

      I know! And I always thought I really loved escargots!

      • apuginthekitchen June 10, 2016 at 6:50 PM

        I made it tonight with seared scallops, so so good. Didn’t follow a recipe for the persillade just put it together. I had forgotten how much I love this sauce. Thanks for the reminder.

  2. Nadia June 9, 2016 at 9:49 AM - Reply

    I am a big fan of persillade. It makes everything taste better, especially snails. Yum!

  3. M.L. Parma June 9, 2016 at 9:56 AM - Reply

    great photos………… >

  4. sippitysup June 9, 2016 at 11:09 AM - Reply

    I love this sauce. I could toss it with pasta and eat it as a meal. GREG

  5. ourfrenchoasis June 9, 2016 at 12:48 PM - Reply

    I love persillade, in fact I love anything with parsley, including a good English cream of Parsely sauce with fish. I also eat Parsely raw. Every time I pass our herb bed in the garden I will pick a sprig and eat it, it is meant to be very good for us and I love the taste!

    • chef mimi June 9, 2016 at 1:09 PM - Reply

      Lots of chlorophyll I think! I guess the herb isn’t under appreciated in France, but it is here is the US!

  6. Gerlinde de Broekert June 9, 2016 at 12:56 PM - Reply

    An ode to persillade, I love it. I like dipping my bread into it. Thanks for the recipe and have a great weekend.

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 6:36 PM - Reply

      Absolutely! That’s more fun than the snails!

  7. Gerlinde de Broekert June 9, 2016 at 12:59 PM - Reply

    A great way to use parsley that is getting old.

  8. StefanGourmet June 9, 2016 at 3:01 PM - Reply

    It is true I have never really tasted escargots, because they are always covered in persillade.

    • chef mimi June 9, 2016 at 4:52 PM - Reply

      They are a little rubbery! Plus you get to dip bread in the persillade!!!

  9. Sabine June 9, 2016 at 5:08 PM - Reply

    A real secret weapon! So delicious…

  10. annascuisine June 9, 2016 at 7:36 PM - Reply

    Sounds delicious. I would love this recipe on seafood and poultry. <3

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 6:37 PM - Reply

      Absolutely! or even pasta, since it’s so similar to a pesto…

      • annascuisine June 10, 2016 at 7:15 PM

        That sounds good! <3

  11. kmroehl June 9, 2016 at 7:41 PM - Reply

    I completely agree–parsley is totally under-used. I’ve never made persillade before but it’s on my to-do list now. Thank you!

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 7:48 AM - Reply

      Sometimes I make parsley pesto, sometimes even with jalapenos, or I add parsley to basil for a different kind of pesto. It’s just such a lovely flavor!

  12. anotherfoodieblogger June 9, 2016 at 8:40 PM - Reply

    Lovely simple recipe for this! I’ll have to remember to make some next time I buy some scallops, thanks Mimi!

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 7:47 AM - Reply

      It would be lovely on steak as well. I like chimichurri, but my husband doesn’t because of the vinegar…

  13. Julie is Hostess At Heart June 9, 2016 at 11:18 PM - Reply

    Persillade sounds delicious and is just beautiful on the food.

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 7:46 AM - Reply

      The freshness of the parsley and the zing of garlic is just a fabulous combination!

  14. Gather and Graze June 10, 2016 at 12:01 AM - Reply

    How lovely Mimi! Persillade prawns is a favourite at our place, but fantastic to see it in use with other meats as well. Funny about the snails… I’ve always enjoyed them, but get more excited about the dunking of bread into the buttery garlic parsley elixir at the end. Totally delicious!

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 7:45 AM - Reply

      Me, too! I always thought I really loved snails!!!

  15. Kim Bultman June 10, 2016 at 7:54 AM - Reply

    My parsley plant is growing exponentially, so Persillade is on my “must make” list. Thank you, Mimi! I also loved the post by your friend — his photos of the “dirty dishes” told such a story, as well as his great-uncle’s face. What a fascinating-looking man. Nice to know his legacy and memory are living on. I will think of him when I make Persillade.

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 8:01 AM - Reply

      Stéphane would be happy to know that! Aren’t his posts so lovely? And funny!!!

  16. Our Growing Paynes June 10, 2016 at 9:26 AM - Reply

    What a versatile sauce! And so easy. Fabulous. :)

    • chef mimi June 10, 2016 at 10:52 AM - Reply

      Definitely easy – and you can just make a small amount if you only need a small amount.

  17. David Scott Allen June 10, 2016 at 9:49 AM - Reply

    Agreed! All those green sauce is make everything taste so fresh!

  18. Laura @ Feast Wisely June 10, 2016 at 9:16 PM - Reply

    Yum Chef Mimi – I didn’t realise persil was parsley and great tip on not over processing too to keep a rustic texture 😄

  19. eliotthecat June 11, 2016 at 5:46 AM - Reply

    I agree, parsley is under used. Lovely dishes, Mimi.

  20. chezlerevefrancais June 11, 2016 at 11:36 AM - Reply

    No matter how small the shop here there are always huge bunches of parsley to buy. The French certainly love it! Great recipe :)

  21. SavoringTime IntheKitchen June 12, 2016 at 8:31 AM - Reply

    I does remind me so much of pesto without the nuts. It sounds so light, summery and wonderful, especially with the seafood. Can’t wait for my parsley plants in the garden to start giving me lots of parsley so I can try this.

    • chef mimi June 12, 2016 at 8:33 AM - Reply

      It’s very similar, except the butter really punches up the flavor and richness. Do try it!

  22. Frank Fariello June 12, 2016 at 3:26 PM - Reply

    Yum! Reminds me a lot of Italian salsa verde, only with melted butter instead of olive oil. As you say, it makes just about anything even more delicious.

    • chef mimi June 12, 2016 at 5:30 PM - Reply

      Yes, to me, it’s mostly about the butter, and then the parsley!

  23. hotlyspiced June 12, 2016 at 4:42 PM - Reply

    I haven’t heard of this sauce. It is such a pretty and vibrant colour. I can see this working well with many dishes. I must give this a try. Also, when you comment on my blog and your URL comes up, if you click on your weblink it doesn’t take me to your blog. This is the URL I get when you make a comment… chefmimiblog Just thought I’d let you know so you can fix it xx

    • chef mimi June 12, 2016 at 5:29 PM - Reply

      I wouldn’t have the slightest idea how to fix that! But thanks for telling me. Persillade is slightly different because of the butter, which is what makes it so fabulous!

  24. cheri June 13, 2016 at 11:12 AM - Reply

    Hi Mimi, such a beautiful and elegant sauce, I absolutely will be making this in my kitchen to go over meats and seafood as my parsley is growing like mad in the garden.

  25. sa.fifer June 19, 2016 at 4:22 PM - Reply

    Reblogged this on A single serving and commented:
    Another “green sauce” to liven up all sorts of things–just the thing if you want a bit of a change from gremolata.

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