Alternative names Pistou sauce Region or state Provence Similar dishes pesto | Type Sauce Serving temperature Cold Place of origin France | |
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Main ingredients Garlic
fresh basil
olive oil Similar Pesto, Tapenade, Rouille, Confit, Salade niçoise | ||
Pistou sauce recipe
Pistou (Provençal: pisto or pistou , [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, pecorino or similar hard cheeses.
Contents
R aliser un merveilleux pistou
Etymology and history
In the Provençal dialect of Occitan, pistou means "pounded".
The sauce is derived from the Genoese pesto, which is traditionally made of garlic, basil, pine nuts, grated Sardinian Pecorino, and olive oil, crushed and mixed together with a mortar and pestle. The key difference between pistou and pesto is the absence of pine nuts in pistou.
Use
Pistou is a typical condiment from the Provence region of France most often associated with the Provençal dish soupe au pistou, which resembles minestrone and may include white beans, green beans, tomatoes, summer squash, potatoes, and pasta. The pistou is incorporated into the soup just before serving.
Gruyère cheese is used in Nice. Some regions substitute Parmesan Cheese. In Liguria, Pecorino, a hard sheep's milk cheese from Sardinia or Corsica is used. Whatever cheese is used, it is preferred that it not be a "stringy" cheese, so that when it melts in a hot liquid (like in the pistou soup, for instance), it does not melt into long strands.