The recipe is a riff on a Greek-style Chimichurri that I serve with grilled meat. Favourites are flank steak and chicken souvlaki. The inspiration for this sauce comes from the Argentinians, who often serve this housemade condiment at their big, meat-centric cook-outs.

More simply, its a salsa verde (green sauce) and I’ve added dried Greek oregano and vine leaves in the mix. It’s briny, it’s bold, it’s sweet, it’s sour and it’s delicious with grilled calamari.  I served these at my January Greek Supper Club at Kritamos and they were the first of the appetizers to go.

Grilled Calamari With Grape Leaf Chimichurri Sauce

(makes an appetizer platter for 4-6)

1 lb. fresh or frozen whole squid (thawed), gutted and cleaned

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

fine sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Grape Leaf Chimichurri

6-8 jarred grape leaves, rinsed

1/2 cup of rinsed fresh parsley leaves, chopped

2 Tbsp. dried Greek oregano

3-4 scallions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 carrot, grated

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp. wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

water (if necessary to thin out)

1. Rinse and pat-dry your cleaned squid (tentacles and tubes) and place in  bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to coat. Set aside.
2. In your blender/food processor, add your Chimichurri ingredients in and process until smooth. Adjust seasoning (it should be slightly tangy) and add some water if the sauce is too thick (optional).
3. Pre-heat your grill to high. Grill squid for about a minute/side and slice the tentacles into rings and place in a bowl with the tentacles and add spoonfuls of the sauce and stir. Add more sauce if desired (you may saute in a hot pan if you don’t have a grill).
4. Serve on platter and pair with Argyros Atlantis White.