• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Celebration Generation
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Life
  • Shop
  • Gluten-Free
  • Low Carb
  • Camping
  • Spandex
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • About Us
  • Recipes
  • Life
  • Shop
  • Contact Us
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Media
  • Gluten-Free
  • Low Carb
  • Camping
  • Spandex
  • Join us on Social Media - Food

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • Join us on Social Media - Costuming, Etc

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Recipes » Condiments

    Cilantro Pesto

    Published: Nov 4, 2020

    Note: This site is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for the site to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.

    Sharing is caring!

    • Reddit
    • Email
    • Tweet
    • Share
    • Tumblr
    Jump to Recipe -

    My cilantro pesto recipe has evolved a bit since I first posted this recipe in 2009... and this has now been updated to reflect the changes!

    Originally published July 12, 2009, Updated on 11/4/20

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    As I’d previously mentioned on my Cilantro Chicken post, I’m in the process of updating old blog posts.

    It’s been pretty wild to see some of what I was doing more than a decade ago, with regards to blogging.

    Taking this Cilantro Pesto Recipe post, for example? Here’s what the original post looked like:

    *****

    I LOVE cilantro! I was blessed to not have the "Cilantro tastes like soap!" gene, and I feel so bad for those that do. They won't get the enjoyment from this recipe that the rest of us can!

    3 cups cilantro, large stems removed, and packed well.
    ½ cup almonds
    1 small chopped onion
    Garlic. As much as you like (I used 6 cloves to start)
    2-4 dried chilis
    ½ teaspoon salt
    ¼ cup olive oil
    Several good dashes lime juice.

    Chop it all together in a food processor.

    Makes a great dip for tortilla chips!

    *****
    That was it, that was the entire post! There wasn’t even a single photo involved!

    So... yeah, this post was definitely overdue for an overhaul!

    A large scoop of pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    Pesto Evolution.

    Well, my cilantro pesto has evolved over the years - and so has the ways we tend to serve it.

    For one, we haven’t made it as a chip dip in many years, generally preferring to serve our "Porterhouse" Guacamole

    One evolutionary “branch” of my cilantro pesto became my Cilantro-Mint Chutney.

    One cup of the cilantro was swapped out for mint, the nuts were left out, a few other tweaks were made, and this cilantro-mint chutney was the result.

    We make this every time we make Indian food, especially Gluten-Free Chicken Pakora, my Gluten-Free Samosas, and Gluten-Free Mixed Veggie Pakoras.

    The other evolution path this took was more of a Thai inspired pesto, which is the Pesto I’m sharing in this updated post!

    A large scoop of pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    My Current Thai Cilantro Pesto

    Going from my original recipe, here are some of the changes I’ve made over the years:

    - Almonds were swapped out for peanuts

    - The onion was swapped out for green onions

    - Dried chilies were replaced with sriracha

    - The lime juice stayed (in theory!), but usually I’ll use Calamansi juice instead.

    As I’ve mentioned before (Like on my Paleo Coconut Calamansi Panna Cotta post!)... I’m completely in love with Calamansi juice in general.

    When it comes to this pesto, I’m *especially* wild about how it works together with the accompanying flavours, like the sriracha and peanuts. Really just a beautiful thing!

    Close up view of a bowl of thai cilantro pesto.

    How to Make Cilantro Pesto

    "Chop it all together in a food processor." really does sum it up.

    I just measure everything into my food processor and let it rip until I'm happy with the texture.

    ... that really is all there is to it!

    Cilantro, peanuts, garlic, green onions, and sriracha are visible in a mini food processor, waiting to be chopped together.

    Cilantro Pesto Uses

    This pesto is a super versatile condiment, and there are a bunch of different ways that we use it. A few, off the top of my head:

    - As a chicken or shrimp marinade, or brushed on after grilling the same.

    - Toss on some noodles. I especially like it on rice noodles with some grilled shrimp tossed in.

    - Spread it on toast. Move over, avocado toast. Cilantro toast should be a THING.

    - On salad. More on this in a minute.

    - With Chicken Satay! It’s a great second dip to have alongside the peanut dip.

    - As a sandwich spread. Especially on anything resembling a Banh mi. Unf.

    - On tacos. Especially shrimp, fish, or chicken tacos.

    - As a dip for falafel.

    - Just eaten with a spoon. Maybe I’m weird, but when I make a batch of this, I loose a good ¼-1/3 of it to just going at it with a spoon as I’m preparing whatever I’m intending to serve it with.

    Fun fact: The photos of the pesto in a bowl? We started with plenty of it - 1 ¼ cups - to be able to fill that bowl as shown.

    ... But I’d eaten enough of it before my husband got his photo stuff set up, that I had to bunch up some parchment paper in the bottom of the bowl to make up for some of the volume lost to ME.

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    Salmon with Thai Pesto

    Aside from just eating it with a spoon, my favourite use for this Thai cilantro pesto is as sort of a solid-ish salad dressing.

    As pictured:

    - Preheat your oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

    - Arrange salmon on the baking sheet, skin side down if applicable.

    - Drizzle a little sesame oil over it, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and sesame seeds. (Sometimes we’ll do onion and/or garlic powder as well)

    - Bake until done. For salmon this size, it’s usually about 15 minutes.

    - While the salmon is baking, make the salad.

    Usually I’ll start with greens - mixed greens, spinach, sometimes a bit of mustard greens if I have them on hand.

    Then I’ll slice up some cabbage: Green, purple, or both.

    From there, it’s the other toppings: Cucumber, watermelon radish, lots of green onions. Sometimes I’ll add beets and/or carrots. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll spiralize them, as pictured.

    We didn’t have any nice avocado on hand when shooting this, but we’ll usually have some avocado slices on it.

    - Put a BIG scoop of the pesto on it. I usually go ⅓ to ½ cup or so, but - as we established - I have *zero* chill when it comes to this stuff!

    - When the salmon is done, carefully lift it up off the skin, place it on the salad, and serve!

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage, with a slice of baked salmon on top!

    Pesto Variations

    All that said, sometimes I do make some variations when I’m making pesto.

    They’re almost always spur of the moment - whether due to mood or ingredient availability - and usually eyeballed in terms of measurements. Here are a few examples of changes I’ll make from time to time:

    Thai 2.0

    Sometimes, I’ll swap out part of the cilantro for mint and/or basil. The proportions always vary, but the usage doesn’t.

    The mint / basil additions still keep this in the “Thai inspired” direction, so I’ll use this variation in the same ways I use my base recipe.

    Southwest Pesto

    Sometimes I’ll make basically the original recipe, but swap the crushed chilies out for some Jalapeno.

    This one is great for tacos, as a corn chip dip, served with quesadillas, etc.

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    More Seasoning & Condiment Recipes

    Looking for some healthy recipes for tasty ways to add a little something extra to your dish? Here are a few ideas:

    Basil Pesto
    Berbere Seasoning
    Canadian Popcorn Seasonings
    Chow Chow Relish
    Cilantro-Mint Chutney
    Diana Sauces (Replica Recipes)
    Hop Extracts
    Seasoned Salt
    Roasted Garlic
    Vanilla Extract
    Homemade Mayonnaise
    Furikake Seasoning
    Honey Dill Dipping Sauce
    Honey Garlic Cooking Sauce
    Hoppy Dill Pickle Relish
    How to Make Compound Butters
    Mediterranean Seasoning for Wings
    Montreal Steak Spice & Marinade
    Olive Salad for Muffalettas
    Pistachio Dukkah
    Porter's Yogurt & Ice Cream Topping
    Roasted Beet Ketchup
    Smoky Dry Rub for Wings
    Sushi Sauce Recipes
    Tangerine Thyme Dry Rub

    Share the Love!

    Before you chow down, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork! If you post it to Bluesky, be sure to tag us - @CelebrationGen. We're also on Pinterest, so you can save all your favourite recipes to a board!

    Also, be sure to subscribe to my free monthly email newsletter, so you never miss out on any of my nonsense.

    Well, the published nonsense, anyway!

    Anyway, on to that recipe!

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!

    A large scoop of cilantro pesto is shown against the backdrop of a gloriously colourful salad - greens, watermelon radish, spiralized carrots and yellow beets, cucumber, and purple cabbage!
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved!
    5 from 1 vote

    Thai Inspired Cilantro Pesto

    My cilantro pesto recipe has evolved a bit since I first posted this recipe in 2009... and this has now been updated to reflect the changes!
    Prep Time5 minutes mins
    Total Time5 minutes mins
    Course: Condiment
    Cuisine: Italian, Thai
    Servings: 1 Cups of Pesto
    Calories: 799kcal
    Author: Marie Porter

    Equipment

    • Food processor

    Ingredients

    • 3 cups cilantro large stems removed, and packed well.
    • ⅓ cup peanuts
    • 3 green onions
    • 4 cloves garlic
    • 1 teaspoon Sriracha
    • ¼ cup olive oil
    • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice or calamansi juice
    • Salt to taste

    Instructions

    • Measure everything except the salt into the food processor
    • Blitz until everything is well chopped and blended to a good consistency.
    • Season with salt, to taste.
    • Cover and chill until use

    Notes

    Note: Nutritional info provided is for the entire recipe.
    After telling you all about my zero chill with this, I can't exactly come up with some nonsense like "a serving is 1 Tbsp", after all!

    Nutrition

    Calories: 799kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 79g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Sodium: 169mg | Potassium: 760mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 3598IU | Vitamin C: 32mg | Calcium: 131mg | Iron: 4mg

    Related posts:

    A plate of corn chips is shown with a bowl of chunky guacamole. Guacamole A close up view of roasted corn salsa for canning - corn salsa with tomatoes and peppers - in a glass bowl. Roasted Corn Salsa for Canning A close up view of a chunky roasted corn salsa verde - a green salsa with yellow corn and red peppers throughout. Roasted Corn Salsa Verde for Canning A generous portion of misir wat, on a pile of injera bread. Berbere Lentils

    More Condiments

    • A small bowl of all dressed ketchup, in front of a bowl of all dressed chips and a bottle of ketchup.
      All Dressed Ketchup
    • A row of small jars of clementine marmalade.
      Clementine Marmalade
    • A square shaped white plate with several golden brown chicken tenders on it, along with a glass bowl full of honey dill dipping sauce.
      Honey Dill Dipping Sauce
    • 3 jars of bright yellow pickles, lined up behind a small bowl of mixed sweet mustard pickles.
      Sweet Mustard Pickles

    Reader Interactions

    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Marie Porter


    Evil Cake Overlord, All -Around Kitchen Badass!

    More about me →


    Join us on Social Media

    Bluesky Logo - White on Blue background. Pinterest Logo - White on red background. Youtube Logo - White on red background.

    More Than Poutine: A Uniquely Canadian Cookbook.
    Learn to sew with spandex

    Most Recent Posts

    • A bowl of Mexican street corn pasta salad, with rotini pasta, charred corn, crumbled cheese, green onions, and jalapenos in a creamy dressing.
      Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad
    • 50+ Amazing Salad Recipes
    • 4 part image showing various different bagels. Overlaid text says 25 plus fantastic bagel recipes.
      Bagel Recipes
    • A sliced loaf of marbled chocolate and peanut butter banana bread.
      Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bread


    META

    Site Admin

    Logout

    Entries Feed

    Footer

    About

    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Contact
    • Media

    Newsletter

    • Click here to sign up for emails and updates

    Our Other Blogs

    • Beyond Flour
    • Low Carb Hoser
    • 2 Nerds in a Truck
    • Spandex Simplified
    • Marie Back on Ice
    • Autism Rants

    Note: This site is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for the site to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites. While I’ll only ever link to items that I, personally, wholeheartedly recommend, I do need to put that disclosure out there!

    Copyright © 2024 Foodie Pro on the Foodie Pro Theme

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.