Mint Pesto (Pesto di Menta)

I bet not many have tried a Mint Pesto. We are all very familiar with the classic basil pesto, and if you are more curious, you may have tried the arugula or dry tomato ones. This fresh 5-minutes vegan mint sauce will make your dishes explode with freshness!

We love pestos, ad we try different variations, to make either oil-free versions, or use our favorite green: Arugula, to give it a peppery note. The classic Basil one is a must-have, which we also use as a condiment for lasagnas, pizza, or in marinara sauces, to give it a flavor kick, just like the famous pesto rosso, which used sun-dried tomatoes as a base.

Since we use carrots quite often for juicing, and we love zero-waste cooking, we always use carrot tops to make carrot greens pesto.

This one was inspired by my arugula pesto recipe on this site and pairs well with this vegan poke bowl. We also love using the super-nutritious kale pesto, or pistachio pesto as a topping for roasted veggies like cauliflower steaks.

Jump to:

• 🧾 Ingredients
• 🔪 Instructions
• 🍶 Substitutions
• 📖 Variations
• 🍽 Equipment
• 🫙 Storage
• 🥢 How to serve 
• 📚 More multipurpose vegan sauces
• 📋 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

🧾 Ingredients

• Fresh mint leaves
• Almonds
• Lemon
• Nutritional yeast
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Garlic
• Salt

See the recipe card for quantities.

🔪 Instructions

1 ) Roast the garlic cloves in a saucepan with a lid for 2-3 minutes until charred.

2 ) Press the garlic cloves with a fork to separate them from the peeling. It should look like a puree.

3 ) Wash and Separate the mint leaves from the stems.

4) Blend. Put all the ingredients in the food processor.

5 ) Adjust with water for fluidness or nutritional yeast for thickness (optional).

Hint: you don't need to thin up the pesto with water unless you are looking to use it as a cream to add a dollop to a poke bowl. Thick pesto goes perfectly well with pasta, as the warm pasta does all the work as soon as you stir in the pesto.

🍶 Substitutions

• Mint - replace mint for basil, arugula, roasted bell pepper, or dry tomatoes in oil.
• Vegetarian - use parmesan cheese instead of nutritional yeast in equal amounts.
• Whole Foods Plant-based diet - instead of olive oil, use hemp seeds and avoid the use of salt. The hemp seeds have a high oil content but are still considered whole food and are lower in fat than olive oil. Find a Parsley-Basil oil-free version as well.

📖 Variations

• Smoother - you can either use shelled almonds or shell them by pouring boiling water on them and letting them soak for an hour. After that, you can easily shell them with the tips of your finger, pressing on each of them.
• Deluxe - change the almonds for pinenuts.
• Garlicky - don't roast the garlic cloves; throw them directly on the food processor.
• Thinner - add an equal amount of water to olive oil.
• Peppery - add a teaspoon of ground black pepper.

🍽 Equipment

You can use either an immersion blender or a food processor.

I prefer using an immersion blender when making small quantities and a food processor when tripling the amounts.

If you prefer a more rustic and authentic pesto, you can chop all the ingredients using a "mezzaluna" (half-moon). Just chop the almonds, garlic and mint leaves separately on a chopping board.

Then mix everything together in a bowl.

🫙 Storage

Store pesto in the fridge for up to 5 days, covered.

You can also freeze-thaw pesto in small quantities, using an ice cube tray, and use the amounts you need, easily adding them to your pasta or sauce or thawing them one hour in advance.

🥢 How to serve 

Use it on your favorite paste. Simple stir in your organic, whole-bran pasta as soon as you strain it.

Thin it up with a bit of water, so it is more liquid, and add it to your Poke Bowl to give it a kick of flavor and freshness.

This pesto also works beautifully with noodles and ravioli.

Read on: how to make your own fresh vegan pasta dough and homemade noodles!

📚 More multipurpose vegan sauces

• Marinara sauce
• Arugula Pesto
• Basil Pesto
• Vegan Bechamel Sauce
• Green Goddess Sauce (no-oil)

Try our roasted red pepper tofu pesto recipe for an oil-free, healthier pesto option.

⭐ If you try this recipe, let us know! 💬 Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag us @ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

📋 Recipe