Sauce Vierge

Ready in minutes, this fresh and bright no-cook sauce vierge is the perfect simple recipe to transform grilled fish or meats, roast or steamed vegetables, spoon over tartines, or even mixed through pasta.

What is Sauce Vierge?

Sauce vierge, or ‘virgin sauce’ is essentially a French fresh tomato vinaigrette made with basil, olive oil, lemon juice, and capers.
Developed by French chef Michael Guérard to be served with grilled or steamed white fish as part of a lighter take on the more traditional nouvelle cuisine which was often rich with butter and cream, this beautiful fresh and vibrant tomato dressing goes with so many dishes.

Ingredients notes and substitutions

• Tomatoes – Roma tomatoes or other large, ripe tomatoes.
• Olive Oil – I recommend using the best olive oil you can for this recipe. The type of olive oil you use will really make a difference to the flavour of your sauce.
• Capers – use capers in vinegar – they provide delicious tangy salty bursts throughout the dressing.
• Lemon – fresh lemon juice gives a lovely sharp zesty flavour to the sauce, however you can substitute with champagne vinegar or red wine vinegar if you prefer.
• Herbs – here I have used garden favourites basil, parsley and chives, however you can use all basil, or a combination of your favourite fresh herbs. If you don’t have basil to hand you can use these basil substitutes or instead of parsley, these parsley alternatives. I have used chives to give a gently onion-taste instead of the more traditional garlic.

My Tips When Making Sauce Vierge

This sauce is one of the quickest and easiest sauces to make, just requiring some chopping and mixing!

• Chop the ingredients finely.
• Once mixed, let the vinaigrette sit for a while at room temperature to macerate – this helps all the flavours develop and mingle to create a beautiful flavoured sauce.
• If you make the sauce ahead and store in the fridge – let it come to room temperature before serving, to allow the flavours to come out.
• You can heat the sauce – place in a small pan and heat gently. Don’t let it boil.

Serving Ideas For Sauce Vierge:

Sauce vierge is such a versatile sauce that enhances an array of ingredients and dishes. Here are some of my favourite ways to serve it:

• With shellfish or seafood – grilled or barbecued cod, or poached salmon are my favourites!
• Spooned on top of bruschetta.
• Mixed in to cooked pasta, or stirred through cold pasta to make a summery pasta salad.
• Use it as a salad dressing or drizzle over steamed or roasted vegetables.
• Over warm new potatoes.
• Grilled or barbecued lamb or chicken.

Variations:

• Cherry tomatoes – when there is an abundance of cherry tomatoes in the garden I use them in this, it can be time consuming to de-seed them so you can leave the seeds in, however keep in mind the sauce is slightly more watery.
• Onions – add a finely chopped spring onion or half a shallot.
• Herbs – swap the basil or parsley for chervil, tarragon (especially delicious with chicken), or even oregano!
• Coriander seed – crushed coriander seed can be added to the sauce.
• Garlic – traditional sauce vierge often includes fresh raw garlic. Whilst I tend to make it without garlic to suit my family’s tastes, if you want to use garlic, add 1 clove minced / crushed garlic.

More Tomato Recipes

These easy recipes are perfect for making the most of beautiful in season tomatoes!