Pebre

The salsa on every Chilean table: chopped coriander, onion, and chilli sharpened with garlic, oregano, vinegar, and oil, spooned over bread, grilled meat, and beans, the fresh, herby, gently fiery condiment of the Chilean meal

Origin: Chile

From the journey of Oregano.

Pebre is to the Chilean table what salsa is to the Mexican: the ever-present condiment, set down with bread before a meal and spooned over almost everything that follows, from the asado and the pastel de choclo to a simple plate of beans. It is built on fresh coriander and onion, sharpened with ají (chilli), garlic, red wine vinegar, and oil, and seasoned with dried oregano, whose Mediterranean pungency, brought to Chile by the Spanish and now grown across the country's dry north, is one of its defining notes. Some versions add tomato, some a little water to loosen it; every household has its own. Fresh, herby, sharp, and gently hot, pebre is the small green-and-red dish that makes a Chilean meal Chilean.

Ingredients

  • 1 large bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped
  • 1 onion, very finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 fresh chilli (ají verde or similar), finely chopped, to taste
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp water, to loosen (optional)

Method

  1. Rinse the finely chopped onion in cold water and drain well, to take off its raw, harsh edge.
  2. Combine the chopped coriander, drained onion, garlic, and chilli in a bowl. Add the oregano, crushing it between your fingers as you add it to release its fragrance.
  3. Stir in the vinegar, olive oil, and salt, and loosen with a little water if you like a looser, more spoonable pebre.
  4. Let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes for the flavours to marry, then taste and adjust the salt, vinegar, and chilli.
  5. Serve in a bowl with bread to start the meal, and alongside grilled meats, beans, or pastel de choclo.

Notes

Pebre is endlessly variable: some cooks add a chopped tomato, some use chopped spring onion in place of onion, some make it fiery with plenty of ají and others keep it mild. Coriander is the usual fresh herb, but parsley, or a mix, is also used. The dried oregano is the constant seasoning that ties it together. A spoonful of ají pebre keeps in the fridge for a day or two but is at its freshest the day it is made.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

Mapping Culinary History

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route
Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
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