Argentinian Salsa Criolla (2024)

If you have ever tried Argentinian BBQ or grilled food, you might have come across chimichurri. But have you tried the amazing Salsa Criolla? I’m honestly obsessed with this salsa. It’s good on anything, from meats to chicken, to hot dogs and even on top of rice. I love it over grilled fish too!!

I mean it’s so versatile and delicious, I have to resists not eating it by spoonfuls before it’s even time to serve. Salsa on its own it’s vegan but obviously most people serve it over some grilled protein. It’s also gluten free and fits Mediterranean Diet even though it’s of Latin origins.

What does Salsa Criolla mean?

The word Criollo or Criolla (when it ends in o it refers to a masculine noun and in a to a feminine one) refers to a description given to someone or something of Spanish descent in South America.

Criollos were usually people of European descent that were born in South America. They created the fusion between local cultures and Spanish culture. The gastronomy is one of those areas that had a lot of fusions and developments, so nowadays that fusion culinary combination is called Gastronomia Criolla in Spanish.

Hence, sauces like this one are called Salsa Criolla in many Latin American countries despite having different variations in each country.

Ingredients

Argentinian salsa criolla is very simple and needs few ingredients. I use green, red and yellow bell peppers, roma tomatoes, white onion, extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper.

Some people might use a different oil than olive oil.

Tips & Notes

I don’t have many tips as this recipe is so easy to make. Can I say double up because you’ll need it? Well, this recipe is for about 4-5 servings. So maybe once you try it once, you can adjust the quantity to what you’ll really need.

• Chopping – since there’s no cooking in this recipe, let’s focus on chopping the vegetables. Cut peppers in julienne strips and then chop them really fine. The appeal of this salsa is also it’s elegance. You don’t want the salsa to look like a salad.
• Roma tomatoes – roma tomatoes need to be ripe but firm. Remove the seeds before dicing.
• Versatility – I try to use a whole red pepper, whole green pepper and whole yellow pepper. However, peppers can vary wildly in size especially here in USA. So feel free to use 1-2 roma tomatoes to compliment the amount of peppers. Also, you’ll need a medium white onion but if onion is too big, then you can just use half of it then store the remaining onion for a salad. Be flexible and use what you have, it will taste amazing anyway:).
• Variations – I’ve seen some versions of this salsa that use garlic, parsley and different quantities on peppers etc. Hope you like my recipe but feel free to adjust to your taste:).

If you’d like to save this recipe for later, please save it in your boards in Pinterest. Let me know in comments if you have any questions. Or feel free to tag me in social media with your pictures of this recipe. Thank you so much / Muchas Gracias:)).

Additional Salsa Recipes

• Bolivian Llajua Salsa
• Peruvian Aji Verde (with Huacatay)
• Yogurt, Cilantro, Garlic Dipping Sauce
• And of course Chimichurri

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