What You Need to Know
This technique involves slowly adding olive oil to a mixture of basil, garlic, and pine nuts while blending, creating a stable emulsion through the formation of a complex network of lipids and proteins. The key variables are temperature, blending speed, and oil addition rate. The optimal temperature for this process is between 15°C and 20°C.
This technique is unique in that it uses a combination of basil and olive oil to create a creamy and aromatic sauce, commonly used in Campanian dishes such as spaghetti alle vongole.
Steps
- 1.
Trofie al Pesto (Liguria, Italy): Creates the signature creamy sauce coating the pasta
- 2.
Pesto Genovese (Genoa, Italy): Forms the base emulsion for the classic basil sauce
- 3.
Pesto alla Trapanese (Sicily, Italy): Emulsifies tomatoes and almonds with the basil
The Science
Primary Reaction
Emulsification of olive oil and basil