You’re going to LOVE this fresh and spicy Cilantro Jalapeño Pesto recipe! It’s a fun twist on traditional pesto, cheaper to make, and perfect tossed with pasta, on pizza, and more. And it only take 5 minutes to make!
What’s a girl to do when she accidentally buys an extra bunch of cilantro, when there was CLEARLY already a ton in her refrigerator? Oops.
Make accidental cilantro jalapeno pesto, that’s what!
This is the happiest mistake I’ve made in a while. Making pesto with basil is delicious, but unless you have a ton growing in your garden (someday, I will!), basil is usually expensive to buy in bulk to make something like pesto. And so, with the help of a little spicy pepper, cilantro jalapeno pesto was born!
Upon tasting it, Zach said, and I quote, “this tastes like a delicious Mexican garden!” He was right. It’s fresh, spicy, flavorful, earthy, healthy, and oh-so-delicious, without being overwhelmingly cilantro-ey. Plus, it costs about $3 to make total.
How to use cilantro jalapeño pesto
If you need more convincing, making pesto is potentially the easiest thing you will ever do. Like, ever. Put things in a food processor and press on. That’s it. Then, you can use it for a number of things, such as:
- on pasta or gnocchi
- on pizza, in lieu of tomato sauce
- on sandwiches as a spread
- on toast
- on tacos (this IS cilantro jalapeno pesto, after all!)
- as a dip
- as the base for a marinade for grilled meat or veggies
- on a baked potato
- Um I can’t think of any more at this very moment but I’m sure there are a million other ways to use this pesto! (Have any ideas…? Leave them in the comments below!)
How to make it
For this pesto, I used almonds instead of pine nuts (mostly because I had almonds in my cabinet, and not pine nuts). This is another way to make this sauce more affordable- pine nuts are pricey!
I used whole almonds, so I pulsed them in the food processor until they were somewhat ground (if you are using pre-sliced or slivered almonds, you may be able to skip this step).
Then, add a whole bunch of cilantro (remove the large stems, but don’t sweat it if you have both stems and leaves in there!), a seeded jalapeno, two whole cloves of garlic, and salt and pepper.
While the food processor is running, add olive oil until you reach the desired consistency.
Can I add cheese?
Yes! This pesto is vegan, but you can modify if you want.
Usually pesto is made with parmesan cheese. I didn’t make this pesto with cheese… mostly because I forgot! Just like I forgot I already had cilantro in my fridge. Oy.
However, my forgetfulness turned out to be another happy accident. I think this pesto is BETTER without cheese! (And that means a lot coming from me- I LOVE cheese). This pesto tastes so delicious without parmesan, and makes it vegan as well.
After I made it and realized my error, I stirred some parmesan into a little bit of the pesto, but decided I preferred it sans-cheese (make no mistake, it was still extremely tasty).
If you add cheese, I might recommend adding cotija cheese or queso fresco, which have a salty flavor but will pair better with the ingredients than parmesan.
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Cilantro Jalapeno Pesto
Equipment
- Food Processor
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup almonds whole, sliced, or slivered
- 1 bunch cilantro large stems removed
- 1 jalapeño seeds removed, if you want a mild pesto
- 1 clove garlic
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus more if necessary
Instructions
- If using whole almonds, pulse in food processor until coarsely ground. Otherwise, skip to step two.
- Place all ingredients except for olive oil in food processor and turn on.
- While food processor is running, add olive oil (1/4 cup). If consistency of pesto is too thick, add more olive oil until you have the desired consistency.
Notes
- Storage: Store in an airtight container or jar in the fridge for one week or in the freezer for 6 months.
- How to add cheese: I recommend adding 1/2 cup of crumbled cotija or queso freso if you prefer cheese in your pesto.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
Anjana Sing
This is hundreds of years old recipe in India, we call it chutney, you can substitute mint for cilantro. It is great with samosas.
Elizabeth Lindemann
I love mint chutney, but I’ve never made it myself! Thanks for the tip :-)
Margarita
Love this recipes! I cook my peppers in the stove, add chicken broth and Parmesan cheese. Great with meats and veggies!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jasmin Almeida
Delicious! Delicious! Made according to recipe but doubled the ingredients without the cheese & it was perfect. I used it as a spread on ciabatta with grilled flank steak, and a medley of sautéed green, red, yellow & orange peppers & red onions – yummy!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! That sounds like a wonderful meal.
Kelly standen
I was just thinking what am I going to do with all my cilantro and jalepeno from my garden! Plus love the switch to almonds!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Hope you like it! It’s too hot for my garden cilantro right now- so jealous!
Jess
Can’t wait to try this!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Hope you like it!!
Ada Garcia
Made it with walnuts istesd and add cotija cheese we serve this at a huge first birthday party over pasta
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yum- love the addition of cotija cheese!
Rachael
I just LOVED this recipe! Usually I find pesto to be too oily so being able to control the amount of olive oil in this recipe is good! The almonds were a nice change and added flavor.. I added the juice of 2 limes and used 2 jalapeno’s. Cheese of some sort could be added, but I didn’t think it was necessary..I used this pesto with salmon. YUM
kerri
My first batch I used slightly less than 1 jalapeno, nervous that too much would make the sauce too hot. It came out with only a very subtle bite. Next time I’ll put in the two jalapenos. Also, I did add parmasan cheese after sampling it without – personal preference I suppose. I mixed this pesto into potato gnocchi and added in roasted cherry plum tomatoes. It was fantastic! Will make again.
Elizabeth
So happy you liked it! I prefer cheese in my pesto too- I think this would be great with Cotija cheese. Thanks for the comment and suggestions!
Sanfy
This is so amazing thank you for sharing it, we will all love it.
Laura
One of my favorite recipes. Family loves it on tacos, pasta, nearly everything. My 16 year old wants it as spicy as possible so I throw in an extra jalapeño. So glad for your “mistake.”
Elizabeth
So glad you and your family like it!
Cindy
Just made this and it is delish! Made exactly as recipe-had extra cilantro too-loved it. Thank you for an easy tasty recipe!
Elizabeth
So glad you liked it, and thanks for the comment!
Dori
Just made a batch of this tonight. It is delicious! And no dairy – woohoo! I tried a version of this from the Whole Foods Market deli (also without dairy) and got online to find a recipe with similar ingredients I could make at home.. You, my dear, have a winner! Thanks so much for sharing.
Elizabeth
So glad you liked it! :-)
Lynette
This recipe is to die for in stuffed burgers!!!!
Elizabeth
OMG I LOVE that idea! Can’t wait to try that. Bet it would be great in butterflied stuffed chicken breasts too!
Sabrina
Can I use this as a pork rub? In my crockpot
Elizabeth
Hm, I don’t know! I’ve never used pesto as a rub- I usually use a bunch of dried spices and oil for pork rubs. I’m actually not sure how well the cilantro would hold up cooked for so long but I think it’s worth a shot! You will probably want to add lots more salt and pepper to the mix to make sure the flavor is potent enough to flavor a large piece of meat. Hope that helps :-)
Cindt
Sounds good but, no almonds . plenty of walnuts or pecans what do you think?
Elizabeth
Either one would be great! That’s what I love about pesto- the ingredients can be super flexible. I might lean towards pecans on this one- a bit more neutral in flavor :) hope you like it!
Dana
Hello! Can’t wait to try this! Have you had any luck canning this?
Elizabeth
Actually (and I’m kind of ashamed to say this since I am a FOOD BLOGGER)… I’ve never canned anything! It’s on my list of things to teach myself. I don’t see why it wouldn’t work though- heating it up just a bit to seal the lid shouldn’t affect the pesto too much. If you try it, let me know how it comes out! :-)
Val
I regularly freeze pesto. Just put it in a Ziploc freezer bag and make sure it is thin and spread out so that you can break off a piece when you need it. It will defrost in minutes that way. My goal is to grow enough basil all summer to freeze enough to last the fall.and winter!
Elizabeth
Yes- freezing works beautifully! Thanks for sharing your tips!
Mara
I love this. I only had raw peanuts so that is what I used, seriously delicious with Mexican. Thanks for the great recipe!
Elizabeth
Thanks, Mara! Glad you liked it!
Hein
I just love how versatile it is! And nothing wrong with a pesto without cheese. I think the flavour is cleaner and lends itself to more uses.
Elizabeth
I agree- the no cheese definitely makes it more versatile! Thanks :-)
Mike
Cilantro and Jalapeno? I’m in, this looks fantastic!
Elizabeth
I know, right? Best combo in the world! :-) Thanks for visiting!
tasteofdivine
Hehe–sometimes “happy accidents” make the best recipes :) I’m totally jealous of your accidental abundance of cilantro by the way. I can’t find any where I am (in Slovenia)! But this looks so delicious I really wish I had some. Pinned!
Elizabeth
I agree! I love a cooking accident. Even if it doesn’t come out good, at least you learn from it! :-) So sorry you can’t find any cilantro where you are! Maybe you could grow it indoors…? Thanks for pinning :-)
Oriana | Mommyhood's Diary
This sounds delicious!! I love keeping pesto handy so when I don’t have time to cook lunch I just spread a little over a bread + some cheese and voila!… Perfect fix. Pinned. Happy week!!!
Elizabeth
Thanks! I know- it’s so versatile. Works for everything. Thanks for pinning and visiting! :-)