Pesto is a deliciously simple sauce that has survived from the Middle Ages. Traditionally, it is a smooth, thick paste made from rubbing garlic, fresh basil with olive oil and, often, pine nuts and grated cheese. There are dozens of uses for this truly royal sauce.
Types of pesto
There are two main types of pesto sauce. This is a classic green genovese pesto made from aromatic herbs such as basil or parsley or salad greens - spinach, arugula and rosso pesto, red pesto made from sun-dried tomatoes. To make traditional pesto you will need:
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves;
- ½ cup grated Parmesan;
- ¼ glasses of pine nuts;
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil;
- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic;
- salt pepper.
Pulse the pine nuts, garlic and basil in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add a little olive oil, then add the Parmesan, mix into a smooth paste and season with salt and pepper.
Ready-made pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for several days, and the sauce can be stored in the freezer for up to two months.
Dishes with pesto
The most common pesto dishes are pasta and pizza. The sauce is added to the pasta at the last moment, before serving. To make a pesto pizza, substitute it for the tomato sauce that was used on the flatbread before? how to put the filling on it. Another popular way to use pesto is to add a few spoons to the hot soup. In "green" soups, add pesto genovese, in soups with tomatoes - pesto rosso. The sauce goes well with cream soups, seafood soups, the traditional Italian minestrone soup. Mixing pesto with plenty of olive oil, adding fresh citrus juice or wine, vinegar or soy sauce makes a great marinade for meat, poultry or fish, or a salad dressing.
Pesto is used to bake steaks, vegetables with it, it is put in mashed potatoes. Put some pesto in the omelet and the dish will be enriched with new flavors. A good way to cook with pesto is to simply spread it on a bread or roll instead of butter, and then make a great sandwich that you can bake if you like. Pesto is also added to the dough for pasta, bread, rolls. With pesto, you can also eat cold meat, fresh vegetables cut into pieces, bread sticks.
The most common mistake in using pesto is overdosing. Most often, one to two teaspoons of sauce is enough for a dish for three to four eaters.
Try making salmon rolls with pesto. This dish will not take much time, but it will amaze you with its excellent taste and elegant appearance. Take:
- 1 salmon fillet;
- 1 tablespoon of pesto genovese;
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Trim tesha from salmon, it is suitable for making fatty soups or for pickling. Cut the fillets in half lengthways and then lengthwise. Brush each piece of pesto, then roll and secure with toothpicks. Fry the fish in preheated oil in a pan for 4-7 minutes.
