Salsa Verde with Flaxseed Oil

Traditional or experiment – your choice

There is a tradition of green sauces in many countries, pesto, salsa verde, green sauce and gremolata are really all variations on the same idea.  There is no need to be traditional, use whatever you have to hand. Even add other vegetables or salad ingredients, use things up, experiment, have fun.

Flaxseed oil great for nutrition, flavour and texture

Flaxseed oil certainly isn’t traditional but it is a great way of getting your omega-3 and I find when I make green sauces with flaxseed oil they seem much more emulsified and less oily than using just olive oil. So now I always make the sauce with at least half Flaxseed oil.

Versatile

This sauce lifts anything you add it to. For me a few oatcakes, green sauce and a glass of wine is perfect. The goes well with or on almost anything, especially:

• Goats cheese
• Pasta
• Pulses
• Soup
• Roasted veg – try aubergine, courgette, butternut squash and carrots
• Potatoes boiled, baked or mashed
• Any fish
• Chicken, turkey
• Cold meats
• Crackers, toast, oatcakes

Green sauce with flax oil

A versatile herby green sauce made with flax oil that you can make with the ingredients you have to hand.

Print Recipe

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Cuisine: Anti-inflammatory, Budwig Diet, Dairy-free, Gluten free, Healthy, Linseed oil, Omega-3, OMS Diet, Paleo, Vegan, Vegetarian, Wheat-free

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 50 g Walnuts, pine nuts, or other nuts, pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds.
• 80-100 g Herbs use whatever you have or fancy, parsley, basil, coriander Foraged herbs are great too
• 150 ml Flax Farm Cold-pressed Flaxseed (linseed) oil or half flax/half olive oil
• 50 g Grated Parmesan cheese or 3-4 TBS nutritional yeast
• 1 pinch Salt optional
• 1-2 cloves Garlic peeled
• Black pepper
• a few drops lemon lemon juice

Method

 

1. Place nuts or seeds in a dry frying pan over a fairly low heat. Shake or stir occasionally to cook evenly until just beginning to dry and sound slightly crisp but before they significantly change colour.

   This stage isn't absolutely essential if you are in a hurry.
2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and whizz. Add more herbs, nuts or nutritional yeast to thicken or more oil to make a thinner sauce.
3. Add salt and pepper to taste

Notes

Green sauces that are mixes of herbs, spices, nuts, seeds, fish, cheese, lemon and vegetables are part of many cuisines in most countries between the Mediterranean and India.  Although there are many traditional versions you can make absolutely delicious green sauces with whatever there is to hand such as stinging nettles, wild garlic, kale etc. Some of my most delicious green sauces have been combos of very untraditional ingredients and I often add sweet peppers, raw or roasted, carrots grated or cooked, and celery. Every fridge should have some fresh green sauce. Store in fridge for about a week.