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Thai-Inspired Vegan Pesto

Prep Time15 minutes
Total Time15 minutes
Servings: 8 (1 cup total)
Calories: 133kcal
Author: Nisha Vora

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (75g) dry-roasted peanuts
  • 3 cups (36g) fresh cilantro (leaves and tender stems)
  • 1/2 cup (~15g) fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
  • 2 large garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1/2- inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 small Serrano chili pepper, roughly chopped
  • Zest of 1/2 large lime
  • Juice of 1 large lime
  • 2 teaspoons tamari, or soy sauce*
  • ¼ cup neutral-tasting oil such as grapeseed oil, plus more as needed
  • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1-3 tablespoons water, plus more as needed

Instructions

  • Add the roasted peanuts to a food processor and blitz until in small pieces. Add the cilantro, mint, garlic, ginger, chili pepper, lime zest, lime juice, and tamari or soy sauce. Blend until a paste forms, scraping down the sides as you go along.
  • Mix together the sesame oil and grapeseed oil.
  • With the motor running, stream in the oil mixture to start to form a sauce. Scrape down the sides again, and stream in more oil as needed until you have a smooth yet thick texture. If the pesto is still not smooth enough but you don’t want to add more oil, add a spoon of water at a time until the sauce comes together.
  • Store in an airtight glass jar in the fridge for 5 days, or freeze up to 6 months.

Notes

*Soy sauce is not gluten-free. If using reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce, you might need a splash more.