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Italian cuisine introduced the world to hearty, healthy dishes made with fresh ingredients. There is nothing superfluous in it, and the main nutritious products are prepared in sophisticated combinations, making dishes not only healthy, but also incredibly tasty. The Italians skillfully combined bread, meat or fish and vegetables, seasoning pasta, cakes and casseroles with fragrant spicy sauces.
One of the classic Italian dressings is pesto sauce, which is made on the basis of a young green basil. Nutritious fatty and spicy components are added to the seasoning, due to which the sauce perfectly lubricates and complements vegetable salads, pastries, stews, bread. And after going abroad Italy, the sauce was enriched with new ingredients and interestingly transformed into an interpretation of other cultures.
What pesto sauce is made of
- The main component is basil, it is taken a lot and chopped into a juicy paste. An additional ingredient, classic for Italian cuisine, is Parmesan - a fatty and dense variety of cream cheese that makes the sauce more caloric and tender at the same time.
- Olive oil is also added for energy value. It is because of this that the sauce has a semi-liquid consistency and lubricates vegetables, cereals and meat so well.
- Another basic component is a pine nut. It makes the taste of the sauce rich, spicy and sophisticated. At the same time, it charges the dish with a stock of irreplaceable useful components. It is also necessary to add garlic to the base.
Other ingredients can be changed depending on the preferences and purpose of the dressing. Combine different products to get truly elegant flavors on the table. The base of the sauce is greens, spices and healthy fat.
Pine nuts are replaced with walnuts or peanuts, you can also take cashews. Instead of cream cheese, soy tofu is sometimes used, and this component is also replaced with avocado paste. Coriander, parsley, bay leaf, freshly ground black pepper, oregano are added to the basil. In some cases, add tomato paste, sweet pepper and olives to the sauce.
What is served with pesto sauce
The yellow version with walnuts and ricotta nourishes vegetable soups and stews with a noble touch, and also goes well with butter and lean bread.
There is a purple version of the sauce based on dark basil with arugula and ghee. This dressing is perfect for fish dishes with vegetables.
Sauce history
The sauce first appeared in Italian cookbooks at the beginning of the 19th century and represented classic Italian cuisine. However, many sources say that the history of sauce dates back to the Roman Empire. Spicy sauce decorated even the most meager table, making ordinary unleavened cakes or roasted meat on the fire refined and tasty.
The original sauce recipe uses not only creamy parmesan, but also pecorino sheep cheese, and instead of the pine nuts we know, they add pine - seeds of southern pine. Garlic is customary to use dried or old, whose taste is less spicy and more spicy. However, harsh young garlic does not spoil the flavor of the sauce.
The name of the sauce comes from the word "crushed, grind." Traditionally, the sauce was prepared in ceramic mortars, carefully crushing the components. Today, the cooking process has been simplified, and a pleasant homogeneous mass can be quickly obtained by grinding the components with a blender.However, if you want to experience the canonical taste of an Italian appetizer, try grinding the ingredients by hand.
How to make delicious pesto
The classic recipe says that you need to take:
- 100 g of fresh basil;
- 150 ml of olive oil;
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- 40 g of cheese;
- 25 g nuts;
- Salt (sea), pepper.
Wash basil thoroughly and tear stiff stalks, then chop it with a knife, also make with garlic. Nuts need to be fried in a pan without adding oil until a characteristic aroma and a golden hue appear. Cheese grated on a fine grater. The basil with garlic is salted and grated, gradually introducing oil, this can be done manually or with a blender. After that, nuts and cheese, pepper are introduced. The paste is mixed until smooth.
Other healthy recipes
You can store pesto in the refrigerator for about a week. In addition, the sauce can be frozen, then it will retain its useful and taste properties for up to 3 months. For convenience, pour the sauce into the molds to use further in portions without defrosting the entire mass. Harvested sauce cubes are transferred to a bag or container. You can defrost the sauce in a water bath without bringing it to a hot state.
To improve taste and extend freshness, juice and lemon peel are added to the paste, which is rubbed onto a fine grater. Fans of cooking experiments can also try adding zest of orange, grapefruit or bergamot, or even lime in combination with avocados.
Note! In yellow sauce with walnuts, honey can be used to add flavor.
Useful properties of pesto sauce
This seasoning not only ennobles the dishes with an exquisite taste - it is also very useful. Sauce from basil cleanses the intestines, helps to remove toxins, normalize healthy metabolism, lower blood cholesterol and strengthen the walls of blood vessels, saturate brain cells with useful fatty acids, and also restore strength after physical exertion.
Add pesto sauce to delicious and healthy dishes to keep your body toned.
Video: how to make pesto sauce
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