Salsa verde is a fresh, tangy, uncooked sauce traditionally served with meat, fish, and salads.

It is an ancient recipe: similar variants were already known in Mesopotamia and later prepared by the Romans, who classified sauces according to their color (salsa verde literally means indeed “green sauce”, which in Latin was “salsa viridis”). Today, it is cherished across many European cuisines, from Italy to Spain, Germany, the UK, and France.

In the countryside of Bassa Reggiana, salsa verde was often prepared to season stews and boiled hen. Its ingredients typically included parsley, onion, garlic, eggs, celery, and carrots, blended with a generous amount of olive oil for smoothness and spreadability. To prevent the sauce from becoming too liquid, stale bread, flatbread, or crackers were sometimes added as thickener.