Table · field guide
Classic Basil Pesto (and How to Freeze It)
One healthy basil plant hands you more leaves than you can eat fresh. Pesto is the fastest way to use a big pick, and it freezes better than almost anything. Here is the classic recipe, plus the cube trick that saves the rest for winter.
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Why this one works
Good pesto is five ingredients and no cooking. You blitz basil, garlic, nuts, cheese, and oil into a paste, and it is done in the time it takes to boil pasta.
The one trick that keeps it green: blanch the basil for 5 seconds and shock it in ice water before you blend. That stops the leaves from turning brown and dull. Skip it if you are eating the pesto today, but do it if you plan to freeze.
Pick and prep the basil
Pick basil in the morning, before the day heats up, when the leaves hold the most oil and smell strongest. Take the top few inches of each stem so the plant branches out and gives you more.
You want about 4 cups of loosely packed leaves for one batch, roughly two big handfuls. Rinse them, spin or pat them dry, and pull the leaves off the thick stems. Thin stems are fine to blend.
Make it your own
The classic is pine nuts and Parmesan, but pesto bends to what you have on hand.
- Swap pine nuts for walnuts or toasted almonds. Cheaper, and nobody at the table will call you out.
- Use Pecorino instead of Parmesan for a sharper, saltier bite.
- Add a squeeze of lemon for a brighter sauce that holds its color longer.
- Leave out the cheese entirely if you plan to freeze it. Stir fresh cheese in after you thaw it, and the texture comes out better.
Save the extra
Pesto freezes for up to 6 months with almost no loss, which makes a big basil pick worth turning into sauce even when you cannot eat it all this week.
Freeze it in an ice cube tray. Spoon the pesto into the wells, freeze until solid overnight, then pop the cubes into a labeled freezer bag. Each cube is about 1 tablespoon, so you thaw exactly what one meal needs and waste nothing.
One honest note: pesto with fresh garlic and cheese in it keeps best frozen, not in the fridge. In the fridge it only holds about 3 to 5 days, and the top browns fast unless you pour a thin layer of oil over it.
Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup pine nuts (or walnuts)
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- Squeeze of fresh lemon juice (optional)
Method
- Optional, for freezing: blanch the basil 5 seconds in boiling water, then plunge into ice water and pat dry.
- Add basil, garlic, nuts, and salt to a food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped.
- With the motor running, pour in the olive oil in a slow stream until the pesto is smooth.
- Add the Parmesan and pulse just to combine. Do not over-blend or it turns pasty.
- Taste and adjust salt. Add a squeeze of lemon if you want a brighter sauce.
- Use right away on pasta, or freeze in ice cube trays for later.
Keep going
Questions, answered straight
Cut basil browns when it hits air. Blanch the leaves for 5 seconds and shock them in ice water before blending, and pour a thin layer of oil over any pesto you store. Both slow the browning.
You can, but the texture is better if you freeze the basil base without cheese and stir fresh Parmesan in after thawing. Frozen cheese can turn a little grainy.
About 3 to 5 days in the fridge with oil on top, or up to 6 months frozen in cubes. Frozen is the better call for a big pick you cannot eat this week.