Pesto and Pistou Recipe (2025)

Actually it's much easier to clean a handheld blender. Just rinse it, add a little dish soap, some water, and use the blender to foam up the water in the jar. Boom, you handheld blender is clean, your jar is clean, rinse and let then dry. Done.

For several years now, I have been making pesto using the blender. It is a very unorthodox approach since I start with the oil and the garlic, then I add a little hot pepper flakes, then the pine nuts and finally the basal. I blend after every addition. Check for texture and taste. I usually refrigerate for at least a day and I add the cheese about 30-45 minutes before I am going to use it. If I am going to freeze the presto, I do not add cheese until I thaw and am going to use.

I prefer to use chopped walnuts instead of pine nuts. They're not authentic but they have more bite to them (so better texture; pine nuts are just too soft and buttery) and are a LOT cheaper.

Forget the jar; takes too long, wastes too much. I had to transfer the mix to a mini processor. Really hard to clean the hand blender afterwards. Use your food processor, maybe more garlic.

I usually make pesto without the cheese and increase the garlic to 5 or 6 cloves. The juice of one lemon will keep it green. I also use a Magic Bullet which quickly purées the pesto.

Last weekend I picked armfuls of the basil in my garden, and made pesto to freeze for winter. I only combine olive oil, garlic and basil when freezing pesto, and use my hand held blender. I store in glass jars.I add Parmigiano Regianno and pine nuts and blend after I have thawed the basil and olive oil if making pesto) - it keeps better in the freezer. It also has the added benefit that I can make pistou with my frozen basil, garlic & olive oil, or pesto by adding cheese and pine nuts.

My daughter makes a wholly inauthentic and most extraordinary pesto from cilantro, garlic and pecans. Oh, dear, it's delicious! Sometimes she adds parmesan but you won't miss it if it's left out.

Sounds like a good recipe, but what I wanted to thank you for was the weight of the basil. I am always putting too much in and the taste is overwhelming. This makes it easy!

Hard to clean? Maybe we don't have similar blenders, but mine is a constant go-to tool and cleans up just as Hildari described.

So easy to make using an immersion blender! And so much quicker to clean as compared to a food processor or regular blender. I added the juice of a fresh lemon and half a cup of fresh parsley since I have an abundance in my garden. I think this brightens the flavor.

Doubled the recipe with 2 bunches of basil from farmers market to yield one pint

Tasty, but beware: this recipe yields a very small amount. Make sure to scale everything up by at least 4 times.

Pistou and pesto are not the same thing.Traditionally, pistou does not have cheese nor pine nuts. Recipes in the US don't seem to recognize the important difference."Pistou (Provençal: pisto (classical) or pistou (Mistralian), pronounced [ˈpistu]), or pistou sauce, is a Provençal cold sauce made from cloves of garlic, fresh basil, and olive oil. It is somewhat similar to the Ligurian sauce pesto, although it lacks pine nuts. Some modern versions of the recipe include grated parmesan, pecorin

I haven't tried the handheld blender, but I used my mini food processor and it worked like a charm. Made pistou last night and it turned out great - the proportions of this recipe are just right.

Ditch the whole wheat!!

Used a single serve blender which worked well then folded in the cheese. Used walnuts instead of pine nuts. Added lemon zest as I always do to pesto and it was perfect.

Last weekend I picked armfuls of the basil in my garden, and made pesto to freeze for winter. I only combine olive oil, garlic and basil when freezing pesto, and use my hand held blender. I store in glass jars.I add Parmigiano Regianno and pine nuts and blend after I have thawed the basil and olive oil if making pesto) - it keeps better in the freezer. It also has the added benefit that I can make pistou with my frozen basil, garlic & olive oil, or pesto by adding cheese and pine nuts.

I made this without nuts because of allergy to them. It turned out great, & is now a family favorite! I like to use the mini-food-processor.

I tried the hand blender with the pint jar. Made one batch that way and became very frustrated with the progress. The blender fit the jar closely and created suction which resulted in mini-explosions of pesto all over the counter and me. Wasted a log, took far longer than the food processor, and the hand blender required hand washing. I’m going back to the food processor.

This worked perfectly with my immersion blender - much easier than a food processor! Good recipe - tastes great!

Sounds like a good recipe, but what I wanted to thank you for was the weight of the basil. I am always putting too much in and the taste is overwhelming. This makes it easy!

My daughter makes a wholly inauthentic and most extraordinary pesto from cilantro, garlic and pecans. Oh, dear, it's delicious! Sometimes she adds parmesan but you won't miss it if it's left out.

I like Pesto with a bit of local honey, blanched almonds and a splash of lemon. Sometimes I use half basil half parsley. The lemon keeps the vibrant green of the basil and adds brightness. The honey balances the saltiness of the cheese. The almonds are more neutral in flavor so the basil shines through. I always make Pesto in my mini food processor. 1,2,3 easy.

Out of season, swap parsley for basil and add a squeeze of lemon. It'll change your life.