Vibrant green pesto with spinach and a touch of heat from the chili oil. This spinach pesto will surely be your new go-to weekday favourite. I like to use this pesto not only to top pasta with, but also as a dip to bring to picnics or at the buffet table.

It is so quick to put together that you can make it while your pasta cooks. Or almost as quick as it takes you to open a package of bread sticks and put them on a plate. Just almost.

How to make spinach pesto with pecans and chili oil

Start by prepping the chili oil, this can be done several days in advance and let the flavours marinate. One jar you can keep at the back of your fridge with a good conscious.

Slice the garlic cloves lengthwise in thin slices.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the sliced garlic and chili flakes. Let it slowly cook together. Be careful not to burn the garlic, it goes really quick from simmering and a lovely golden colour, to dark brown and tasting bitter and burnt. I often have to do this step twice, as I am whizzing around my kitchen doing all sorts of other things and forget the pan of oil on the stove.

Once the garlic has coloured some, let it cool down a bit before carefully pouring it in to a heat proof jar. Once completely cooled, you can put on the lid and let it sit either on your counter or in the fridge.

Now for the pesto, start by blanching the spinach in a big pot of boiling water. If I am making pasta the same day, I fish out the spinach leaves and then use the same water to cook the pasta, adding salt before adding the pasta in to the boiling water.

In the mean time, roughly chop the pecans and garlic. And shred the parmesan.

Add all the ingredients into a standing mixer and pulse until the pesto is smooth, or to your liking. Add more olive oil if necessary to give desired consistency. Taste and check if you need more salt.

For full measurements and cooking instructions, see the recipe card below.

Substitutes

For a nut free variation, simply remove the pecans.

To make it vegetarian, check the parmesan as it is not always vegetarian due to its processing. Or replace with a vegetarian cheese.

If you prefer a more mellow pesto, then skip adding the chili oil into the pesto and just put the jar on the table, and people can add as much as they want on their own plate.

Freezable

I love a recipe that freezes well, so I can make a big batch of it and stick it in the freezer for later use. Meal prep at its best. The pesto will keep in the freezer, in an airtight container for up to three months. Keep it airtight to make sure the pesto keeps its vibrant colour. When you need to use your pesto, for best result, defrost it in the fridge over the day. However in a pinch you can cook it straight from frozen on low heat in a pan. Stir frequently so that the pesto doesn’t get stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add more olive oil if you think the consistency is to thick.

Variations

I love green, leafy spinach because of the extra iron and vitamins, but you can make this pesto the traditional way using fresh basil.

Use this pesto to fill your puff pastry pesto pinwheels or put the pesto on my crushed potatoes.

If you like spinach, try my easy one pot creamy sun dried tomato and spinach pasta.