The name pesto is the past participle of theGenoese verbpestâ (Italian:pestare), meaning 'to pound', 'to crush': the ingredients are "crushed" or ground in a marblemortar through a circular motion of a woodenpestle. The sameLatin root is the basis forpestle.[4] There are other foods calledpesto, butpesto by itself usually meanspesto alla genovese.[5]
Pesto is thought to have had two predecessors in ancient times, going back as far as theRoman age. Theancient Romans used to eat a similar paste calledmoretum, which was made by crushing garlic, salt, cheese, herbs, olive oil, and vinegar (and sometimes pine nuts) together.[3][6] The use of this paste in the Roman cuisine is mentioned in theAppendix Vergiliana, an ancient collection of poems in which the author details the preparation ofmoretum.[6] During theMiddle Ages, a popular sauce in the Genoan cuisine wasagliata, which was a mash of garlic and walnuts, as garlic was a staple in the nutrition of Ligurians, especially for the seafarers.[3]
The introduction of basil, the main ingredient of modern pesto, occurred in more recent times and is first documented only from the 1850s. Emanuele Rossi publishedLa Vera Cucineria Genovese in 1852 and gastronomist Giovanni Battista Ratto publishedLa Cuciniera Genovese in 1863:[3]
Take a clove ofgarlic,basil or, when that is lacking,marjoram andparsley, gratedDutch andParmigiano cheese and mix them withpine nuts and crush it all together in a mortar with a littlebutter until reduced to a paste. Then dissolve it with good and abundant oil.Lasagne andtrofie are dressed with this mash, made more liquid by adding a little hot water without salt.[7]
Basil took the firmest root in the regions ofLiguria, Italy, andProvence, France.[8] It is abundant in these regions in season, and marjoram and parsley may be used when basil is out of season.[3] Ratto mentions Dutch cheese (formaggio olandese) instead ofpecorino sardo (Sardinian sheep's cheese), since Northern European cheeses were common in Genoa at the time, thanks to the centuries-long commercial trades of themaritime republic.[3]
This recipe forpesto alla genovese was often revised in the following years (a noted revision by Emanuele Rossi occurred in 1865, only a couple of years after Ratto'sCuciniera),[9] and it shortly became a staple in the Ligurian culinary tradition, with many variants.[10]
An early American pesto recipe was published in 1928; it includes butter and cream.[11] In 1946,Sunset magazine published a pesto recipe byAngelo Pellegrini. Pesto became popular in North America in the 1980s and 1990s.[12]
Pesto is traditionally prepared in a marble mortar with a wooden pestle. First, garlic and pine nuts are placed in the mortar and reduced to a cream,[2] and then the washed and dried basil leaves are added with coarse salt and ground to a creamy consistency. Only then is a mix ofParmesan andpecorino added. To help incorporate the cheese, a little extra-virgin olive oil is added. In a tight jar (or simply in an air-tight plastic container), covered by a layer of extra-virgin olive oil, pesto can last in the refrigerator for up to a week and can be frozen for later use.[13]
Pesto comes in a variety of recipes, some traditional and some modern, as the very nounpesto is a generic term for anything that is made by pounding.[15]
There is a slightly different version in Provence, where it is known aspistou (frompistar, 'to pound' inOccitan).[17]Pistou is generally made with only olive oil, basil, and garlic, and not cheese, although some modern versions include it. Almonds or breadcrumbs can be used to give the final consistency.[18]Pistou is used in thesoupe au pistou, a hearty vegetable soup.[19]
Outside of Italy, sometimes almond, Brazil, cashew, hazelnut, macadamia, pecan, pistachio, walnut or even peanuts are used instead of pine nuts, and sometimes coriander, dill, kale, mint, parsley, rocket, spinach or wild garlic leaves are mixed in with the basil leaves.[19] Any combination of flavourful leaves, oily nuts, hard cheese, olive oil, garlic, salt, and lemon juice can produce a pesto-like condiment.[20]
Pesto alla siciliana, also known aspesto alla trapanese and sometimes calledpesto rosso ('red pesto'), is a sauce fromSicily similar topesto alla genovese but with the addition of fresh tomato and almonds instead of pine nuts, and much less basil.[21]
Pesto alla calabrese is a sauce fromCalabria consisting of (grilled) bell peppers, black pepper, and more; these ingredients give it a distinctively spicy taste.[22]
Outside Italy, the namepesto has been used for all sorts of cold sauces or dips, mostly without any of the original ingredients: coriander, dill, kale, mint, parsley, rocket, spinach or wild garlic (instead of or in addition to basil), artichokes, black olives, green olives, lemon peel, lime peel or mushrooms.[23] In more northern countries,ramson leaves are sometimes used instead of basil.[24]
For reasons of expense or availability, almond, Brazil nut, cashew, hazelnut, macadamia, pecan, pistachio, walnut or even peanuts are sometimes substituted for the traditional pine nuts. Also, while the nuts are traditionally raw, some recipes call for prior toasting or roasting. Other nuts may be used due to the taste disturbances that some people may experience after consuming pine nuts (seepine mouth). Many online recipes in English for pesto includeblack pepper orwhite pepper,[26] which are not present in the usual Genoese recipe.[3] Prepared pesto sold in supermarkets often replaces the extra virgin olive oil with cheaper vegetable oils. Some manufacturers of pesto for European supermarkets also use fillers such as potato flakes or potato starch, which soften the strong flavour. Certain pesto recipes abroad replace basil or pine nuts with other herbs and greens, such as:
^"pesto".Online Etymological Dictionary.Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved16 May 2019.
^Pronzati, Virgilio (2012). "Si fa presto a dire pesto" [It is one thing to say Pesto].Come uno specialista di enogastronomia racconta la storia popolare Genovese [How a food and wine specialist relates the Genoese folk history](PDF) (in Italian). Genoa. p. 2.Archived(PDF) from the original on 27 January 2016. Retrieved19 January 2016.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Ratto, Giovanni Battista (1863).La Cuciniera Genovese. Genoa: Fratelli Pagano. Archived from the original on 10 October 2020. Retrieved4 October 2020.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^abBrennan, Georgeanna (8 March 2007).A Pig in Provence: Good Food and Simple Pleasures in the South of France. Chronicle Books. p. 156.ISBN978-0-8118-5213-5.
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