This simple cold sauce is one of the key components of Italian cuisine. There are many recipes, however, at the Pesto World Championship, which takes place annually in Genoa, the following recipe is used.
Ingredients
4 bunches of fresh green basil (only leaves),
30 grams of pine nuts (traditionally replaced by cedar nuts),
45-60 grams of Parmesan cheese,
20-40 grams of Pecorino Sardo cheese,
1-2 cloves of garlic,
10 grams of salt,
60-80 milliliters of extra virgin olive oil.
Additionally, you will need a mortar (stone, preferably marble), a pestle (preferably wooden), and a regular fork.
Technique
1. Rinse the basil leaves in cold water, then gently dry them with a paper towel.
2. Grate the cheese on a fine grater.
3. Place the nuts and peeled garlic in the mortar, then use the pestle to crush them into a uniform paste with circular motions.
4. Add a pinch of salt, then fill the mortar with the basil leaves without packing them down. Grind them with circular motions along the walls and bottom of the mortar, mixing them with the nut-garlic paste. Repeat the process until all the leaves are used.
Act quickly, otherwise the mixture may oxidize and lose some of its aroma.
5. When all the basil turns into a thick bright green mass, add the cheese. Mix with a fork. Pour in the oil and whisk until a homogeneous consistency is achieved.
