pesto

Italian pestare means to pound, to crush — to apply force in a downward motion. The past participle, pesto, means 'the thing that has been pounded.' The name is a process description: take the ingredients, pound them in a stone mortar until they become a paste. The finished sauce carries its method in its name.

Pesto alla Genovese — basil pesto from Genoa — combines basil, Ligurian olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino Sardo, garlic, and pine nuts, pounded in a marble mortar with a wooden pestle. The Ligurian tradition is specific: the basil must be young, from the Prà district of Genoa; the oil must be cold-pressed Ligurian; the Pecorino must be Sardinian. The sauce is protected by a Consorzio del Pesto Genovese.

The mortar and pestle are among the oldest kitchen tools in the world — stone mortars from 35,000 BCE have been found in archaeological sites. The action of grinding, the circular and downward pressure that converts whole ingredients into paste, is one of the most ancient culinary techniques. Pesto preserves this ancient method in its name while every food processor owner ignores it.

The global spread of pesto came in the late 20th century as Italian cuisine became fashionable worldwide. Jar pesto — processed, preserved, commercially scaled — now fills supermarket shelves in every country. The Genovese Consorzio grimly notes that most of the world has never tasted real pesto. The word has traveled farther than the technique.