Pesto sauce - is canning ok?

Hi. Love to have some help about making pesto sauce and hopefully someone can assist me. There are several recipes I can find online, and in my cookbooks, for Pesto sauce. However, none of them mention canning the prepared mixture. Does this mean that pesto sauce is best kept for only fresh use? I hope not. With my abundance of basil, I was hoping to can it and use the jars as part of Christmas packages. Thanks!!! :

moderator's note: added a more descriptive title to topic

 

From what I've read it is difficult to get a good seal on a jar with oily contents.
I just froze mine.
If you find out it can be home canned I'd like to do it too so please post instructions if you find them.

 

Hey I did some searching and this is what I found..

I put the link in at the bottom for the site...Hope this helps!

http://www.backwoodshome.com/advice/aj74.html

 

freeze it! I found a small plastic container of cilantro pesto in the back of my freezer, it was dated 2009! I almost threw it out but my curiosity got the better of me (also my cheap-genes) I tasted wonderful, no freezer burn or odd flavors! The olive oil must protect it. I made three pestos this week and noticed my 5 basil pesto got a discoloration like avocados get on the surface at room temp, I probably needed more oil on top too, which I added. And I used less lemon juice to the basil batch, I think that is key too. It keeps fine in the fridge though. I was taught by an Italian girl to add more olive oil to the top after reach use, the olive oil keeps it from contacting the air.

After reading the canning post above, I am pretty sure it will affect the texture and the flavor but you might get something quite useful. I'd add roasted garlic and and maybe roasted peppers... in fact, i'm going to try that this year!

 

Canning pesto, i would suggest against, mainly due to the high risk of either rancidity or serious food poisoning that herbs can present.

i had a lot of success with freezing mine Crisgzr, i put the pesto into ice cube trays freeze them down then put them into a ziploc bag with a small amount of olive oil and shake them. this helps reduce the freezer burn. Then suck the air out with a straw and keep.

we just used the last of last years batch which still tastes great. Pre freezing it into cubes allows you to quickly take what you need and put the rest back so it doesn't go through lots of defrost and refreezing

 

I have 24 cups of home grown basil that I will make pesto sauce with. I have always froze it in 1 cup containers. I have been canning for the last 2 years, mostly tomatoes and peppers. I want to try canning pesto to save room in the freezer and in case the power goes out. The only recipe I found was in the USDA "Home Canning and Preserving" for spinach.

As a low acid food it must be done in a pressure canner. A boiling water canner does not reach a high enough temperature to be safe. A pressure canner can reach a temp of 240 degrees F. Put the pesto into prepared ball jars as instructed. Half pint jars for 60 min. @ 11 lbs. pressure. (adjust time for altitude)

In my wandering I found some ideas,

Blanch the basil
Adding some acid can't hurt, lemon zest or juice
Someone said not to freeze/can? the parmesan, but to add it after it is thawed. Might be a good idea.

 

If you ever want a good safe answer about preserving food even if you don't like the answer go to http://nchfp.uga.edu/index.html.
Being safe is very important.


It says:
"How do I can oil with herbs? Can I can pesto?
Herbs and oils are both low-acid and together could support the growth of the disease-causing Clostridium botulinum bacteria. Oils may be flavored with herbs if they are made up for fresh use, stored in the refrigerator and used within 2 to 3 days. There are no canning recommendations. Fresh herbs must be washed well and dried completely before storing in the oil. The very best sanitation and personal hygiene practices must be used. Pesto is an uncooked seasoning mixture of herbs, usually including fresh basil, and some oil. It may be frozen for long term storage; there are no home canning recommendations."


Sometimes I go against the rules but in this case pesto is a raw type food and the only real way to can this is to pressure can it which will cook it. Then it's no longer basil pesto.

FREEZE IT

 

I would not suggest doing that. Botulism is not something you want. Not only might you get ill or worse, so could those you give it to. If you want to do something start them a basil plant in a little pot add a couple of heads of garlic and your recipe for making pesto. Put in a decorative basket, add ribbon, a card and voila`!

 

I think it definitely loses something in pressure canning. In order for it to work you have to pressurize it so long that it cooks and loses the integrity of the sauce. FREEZE! preserves it much longer. You can jar and freeze or place in ice cube trays and move them to ziplocks after they are frozen. Much fresher taste.