Basil Pesto

By Florence Fabricant

Updated May 20, 2025

Basil Pesto
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Total Time
15 minutes
Rating
5(9,025)
Comments
Read comments

Pesto is a mouthful of bright summer — basil made more so. You can buy it in a jar or in the refrigerator section of your grocery store, but there is nothing better than making it yourself. Fresh basil can be found in abundance at farmers’ markets in the summer. Just clean, take the stems off and throw the leaves in a food processor with nuts and garlic. Dribble in the oil and you’ve got a versatile sauce for pasta, chicken or fish.

Why You Should Trust This Recipe

First published in 1986, this essential sauce recipe was created by Florence Fabricant. She began writing for the Times in 1972 and is the author of 12 cookbooks.

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Ingredients

Yield:2 cups
  • 2cups fresh basil leaves (no stems)
  • 2tablespoons pine nuts (or walnuts)
  • 2large cloves garlic
  • ½cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ½cup freshly grated Parmesan
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (16 servings)

87 calories; 9 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 55 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine basil leaves, pine nuts (or walnuts) and garlic in a food processor and process until very finely minced.

    Image of ingredients in food processor for making pesto.
  2. Step 2

    With the machine running, slowly dribble in the oil and process until the mixture is smooth.

  3. Step 3

    Add the cheese and process very briefly, just long enough to combine. Store in refrigerator or freezer.

    Image of adding cheese to a food processor for making pesto.

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FAQS

  1. Pesto can be frozen for up to 3 months. Transfer the fresh pesto to an airtight container and top with a very thin layer of oil before freezing. Some people freeze pesto in designated ice cube trays until firm, then transfer the frozen cubes to an airtight container. For a fresher flavor, make and freeze pesto without the cheese, then add the grated cheese once thawed.

Ratings

5 out of 5
9,025 user ratings
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Comments

RECMSOJ

Dying to try this - I make a poor man's pesto every time my kids want pasta with tomato sauce, but want the real thing. Never used fresh basil, so how do you measure 2 cups? Is it packed down in the cup, or fluffy, or how do you judge?

Steven B.

Weigh the basil. America's Test Kitchen (in their Cook's Country magazine) did a taste test with the various amounts of basil that people measure as 1 cup. The result was that using 18.7 grams as 1 cup of basil leaves was preferred. This means that for this recipe you will want to use 37.4 (round up to 38 or even 40) grams of basil leaves.

Andrea

Well.... just this is just the very essential recipe but pesto is more complex . In Liguria near Genova where pesto is originally coming from the recipe add two main components : small round boiled potato and long green beans , the potato will give consistency the green long beans will take down the pungent flavor of basil rounding the chlorophyle on a melting flavor of grass . Cheese , only pecorino not any cheese and not "pecorino romano" , just "sweet" seasoned pecorino ...

Kelly L

Early in the season or whenever my basil plants are not giving me enough leaves, I will use spinach for part of the basil and definitely toast the pine nuts. My husband actually prefers the pesto with the spinach as he is not as fond of the basil flavor as I am. I also like a little more garlic than is called for, but that can also be influenced by the size of the cloves.

Craig W

My family loves pesto! I lightly toast (in a pan) the pine nuts and give the pesto little squeeze of lemon.

Randall

We always add red pepper. Very versatile base, also try pistachios (unsalted) instead of pine nuts.

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