The Zippy, Make-Ahead Green Sauce That'll Brighten Cold-Weather Dinners

The words “hassle-free holiday trick” are music to our ears. We partnered with Delta® Faucet to announce their newest addition to the kitchen, ShieldSpray™ Technology It makes holiday cleanup easy by keeping the splashing contained, so we’re free to entertain more. And we’re celebrating by sharing our favorite make-ahead sauces that’ll add that something extra to all your holiday dinner parties.

Charmoula is a vibrant, North African green sauce or marinade that compliments everything from fish to meat to vegetables. Its zippiness is thanks to lemon (often preserved), garlic, and vinegar; its emerald green color comes from parsley, cilantro, and scallions; and its soulfulness comes from spices like cumin and cinnamon. Charmoula is multi-faceted, just like you, fellow human.

This is why I fancy it a real hero in the kitchen and on the dinner table. Making Charmoula is self-contained, mostly handled by a food processor, keeping messes to a minimum and zero burners involved. It’s one of those go-to’s when you’ve sort of run out of ideas, or you need just one little thing to perk up chicken or steak. (In the cookbook A New Way to Dinner, our co-founder Amanda dresses up chicken cutlets, lamb, fish, and even sandwiches with it.)

Charmoula

By Food52

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Charmoula will brighten up any meal, so here are three menus to make during the holidays that’ll use it well:

Menu #1

How to use the Charmoula:

• Alternate your crostini with Charmoula and the carrot harissa mash, or dab some on top.
• Toss your potatoes with the Charmoula.
• Slick it on the salmon if you’d like.

Menu #2

How to use the Charmoula:

• Serve up croutons with Charmoula as little nibbles before dinner (permission granted).
• Set out bowls of the sauce on the side with the chicken and chickpeas.

Menu #3

How to use the Charmoula:

• Dab the bright green of Charmoula on deeply crimsom beet fritters.
• A slow roasted ribeye will happily welcome the zest of the sauce.
• Stuffed delicata squash will look and taste dazzling with a drizzle of it.

We partnered with Delta® Faucet to celebrate their newest addition to the kitchen, ShieldSpray™ Technology. It allows hosts seamless cleanup (be gone, stubborn food specks) without making an even bigger mess (thanks to an innovative shield of water that surrounds the water jet). And all that means more time with guests—plus less time soaking, scrubbing, and shirt swapping.

(via Food52)