La clave de una gremolata equilibrada está en cómo se pica el perejil
La gremolata, una salsa verde italiana de perejil, ralladura de limón y ajo, realza la carne asada, el pescado y las verduras a la plancha.
Gremolata is a traditional Italian condiment similar to pesto, but it's made with finely grated lemon zest, parsley, and garlic. Simply sprinkle a little over osso buco, breaded chicken, or roasted carrots to add a touch of freshness to the dish.
Prepared well, it adds freshness and complexity and counteracts the heaviness of braised meats or slow-roasted game. Prepared poorly, it's bitter and detracts from the dish. The usual proportions are around three ingredients: about a cup of parsley, two cloves of garlic, and two tablespoons of lemon zest. It's best to chop each ingredient with a sharp chef's knife, without using food processors or choppers, which can damage the delicate ingredients.
Parsley is the main ingredient, so choose healthy, fresh leaves without any wilted stems. To remove the fuzz, wash it and dry it in a salad spinner. Then chop it very finely: the finer the chop, the more evenly its bitterness will be distributed. Flat-leaf parsley is easier to chop by hand than curly parsley.
Separate the garlic cloves and flatten them on the board before chopping them, as Jacques Pépin suggests. Grate only the yellow part of the lemon using a microplane or a bartender's grater, because the white part makes the gremolata bitter.
Chop each ingredient separately. If you chop them together on the cutting board, you'll end up with pieces of very different sizes and large portions of parsley, which will make it bitter. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and the gremolata will be ready.
