Maybe you’ve heard or read of pistachio paste before, but even if you haven’t, you’re sure to come across a recipe where it’s mentioned as an ingredient. This paste is typically made of shelled pistachios and water is, in fact, a tasty alternative spread on warm toast or biscuits for breakfast or afternoon tea, and a great addition to many dishes, including desserts.
Is it possible to make the paste yourself? Unsurprisingly, the answer is yes. After all, with only two ingredients, there’s no reason you can’t make your own pistachio paste so that you’ll always have some on hand. Here are two ways you can try!
Basic Pistachio Paste
As mentioned earlier, there are only two ingredients needed for pistachio paste: pistachios and water. Ideally, you’ll want raw and unsalted pistachios that have been shelled and also have a vibrant green colour. You can add a bit of salt and unflavoured oil, to enhance the taste and to help make the paste become smoother, but these are optional.
To prepare the pistachios, you need to blanch them first in order to soften and loosen the skins, which you’ll be removing. Once the pistachios are blanched, you can just use your fingers to pop or slide the skins off, or roll and rub them around in a folded dish towel to loosen and remove most of the skins.
When you have your prepared pistachios, place them in a food processor or powerful blender, and start blending. They’ll go from whole nuts to chopped pieces or crumbs, and finally to a powder. At this point, start adding water a little bit at a time and keep blending until the consistency becomes nice and smooth. If you’re adding oil, you can add it at this point, too, to aid in the blending. If using salt, add it at the end after tasting the resulting paste.
A few things to note: there’s no problem with using unshelled raw pistachios, but if you do so, you can’t check that they’re the right colour. Also, you can use slightly older pistachios that aren’t as brightly coloured, but you’ll end up with a paste that’s either a duller green or slightly brownish. Fortunately, that won’t affect the flavour too much.
Sweet Pistachio Paste
This version of pistachio paste uses practically the same ingredients as basic pistachio paste, with the addition of white sugar. Pistachios by themselves have a slightly sweet taste, so adding just the right amount of sugar enhances the flavour. Salt and oil are also necessary ingredients for this version, rather than being optional as with the first recipe.
Prepare the pistachios as you would for the basic paste, then set them aside in a bowl. Then while they’re cooling, boil the sugar and water together to make a sugar syrup. Once the sugar is dissolved, take the syrup off the heat and pour it over the pistachios. Stir the nuts until they’re coated in the syrup, then wait until it’s cooled to add the sugared pistachios to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, adding a little oil when needed and a pinch of salt to balance out the sweetness.
Regardless of which recipe you use, make sure to wait for the paste to cool before transferring to an airtight container and storing it in a cool, dry, place. However, if you’re uncertain yet about how often you’ll be using pistachio paste in your Sydney home and want to try commercial versions first, click here to get started.