How to Make Pesto Using Fresh Basil
Pesto is a typical basil-based sauce from the Liguria region of Italy. It is popular in Italy as well as in countries where Italian food is held in high regard, such as the United States. Pesto is traditionally made by grinding the ingredients with a mortar and pestle or by chopping them with a knife. You can use pesto as a sauce for pasta and pizza, a dressing for salads and as a spread for grilled panini and sandwiches. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese or Parmigiano-Reggiano
- Cheese grater
- Cutting board
- Strong chopping knife or mezzaluna
- 2 cups of fresh basil leaves
- 2 cloves of garlic, outside removed
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- Bowl
- Utensil
- 5 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- Pinch of sea salt
- Mortar and pestle (optional)
- Food processor (optional)
Instructions
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Finely grate the cheese and set it aside.
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Finely chop the fresh basil leaves using a strong chopping knife or a mezzaluna, which is a two-handled Italian knife with a curved blade that resembles a half moon shape. Finely chop the garlic cloves and the pine nuts. If you really need some help with the pine nuts, you can also use a mortar and pestle or a food processor.
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3
Combine the chopped fresh basil leaves, garlic and pine nuts in a bowl with a utensil. Mix in the extra-virgin olive oil and the pinch of sea salt, t hen stir in the cheese.
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4
Use the pesto in a recipe. Otherwise you can store it in an airtight container, where it will keep in the refrigerator for up to one week.
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Tips & Warnings
To vary, you can use walnuts or toasted pecans instead of the pine nuts, or some Italian parsley instead of a portion of the fresh basil.
Instead of chopping the ingredients, you can bruise them instead. Some of the texture will be lost but bruising the ingredients can bring out their flavors better. Use a mortar and pestle to grind the basil leaves, garlic and pine nuts together to form a paste. Then add the olive oil, sea salt and cheese as above.
To save time, you can grate the cheese and process the pesto using a food processor. The advantage is that it will be more uniform in texture, but at the same time, it will lose the character of handmade pesto.
After the hand chopping, the fresh basil leaves, garlic cloves and pine nuts will end up being different sizes, as that is one of the benefits of making pesto by hand -- the rich and varied texture of the finished product.
References
- Photo Credit Brand X Pictures/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
