Born of my need to use leftover kaffir lime leaves, this Kaffir Basil Pesto is a bright, citrus-y twist on the classic recipe!
I use kaffir leaves in my Thai Curry (LINK) recipe and I am only able to buy them by the bag at my local Asian market. Being as that recipe only calls for a couple, I often end up with a lot of leftovers. They freeze very nicely which is helpful- but even so, it’s a lot to go through. I needed to find another way to move through them! This recipe was born from that need to use up leftover kaffir lime leaves. And whenever I have an abundance of a fragrant green, pesto always comes to mind!
This recipe is awesome served with pasta, as pictured, but to me it just screams for white fish. Any firm, white fish – such as mahi-mahi or catfish – will do the trick. Beyond that, I love it with grilled or roasted vegetables or as a sauce drizzled over chicken or shrimp. It also can be a classy and surprising addition to a charcuterie board. Once you taste the bright, lemon-citrus overtones of this unique pesto, you’ll come up with all kinds of ways to use it!
This is a pretty straight-forward recipe. My only piece of ingredient advice is the same one I gave in my Cuban Mojo Sauce recipe – use the highest-quality olive oil you can find! In recipes like this, where olive oil is one of the main flavor components, you want to pick something that is genuinely delicious. To me, high quality olive oil is the underrated secret that makes a sauce go from good to great.
Looking for other unique sauce recipes? Check out my Hatch Horsey Sauce, Denver Green Chile and Ultra Umami Mushroom Sauce (LINK) recipes!
Kaffir Basil Pesto
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 loose cups basil (approx. one 3-oz package)
- 3/4 cup kaffir lime leaves (about 20 leaves)
- 1/2 cup high-quality olive oil
Instructions
- Heat a small pan on medium-low. Once warm, add pine nuts and toast, stirring often, until golden brown - about 5 minutes.
- Place pine nuts, garlic and salt into a food processor (or mortar and pestle!). Pulse until the mixture forms a paste that sticks together in clumps.
- Add basil and kaffir lime leaves to food processor. Pulse until thoroughly chopped and combined, scraping down the sides as necessary.
- Add olive oil and pulse a few more times, until just combined. Serve.
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