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Home » Dressings Dips » Easy Fragrant Homemade Basil Oil

Easy Fragrant Homemade Basil Oil

Published: Apr 6, 2016 Modified: Apr 5, 2020 By Sujata Shukla This blog generates income via ads. This post may contain affiliate links. PepperOnPizza may earn a commission for purchases made after clicking these links. View our disclosure policy for details

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Homemade Basil Oil_PepperOnPizza.com

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Recipe 8 of my 100 Healthy Recipes Challenge, a lovely sweet smelling homemade Basil Oil. Basil plants are usually prolific and the leaves need to be plucked frequently in order for the plant to thrive. I have a pot of basil in my little (5 pot) balcony garden, and it keeps me well supplied with fresh basil leaves. So what do you do with all that basil? Well, you could try this Homemade Basil Oil.

Homemade Basil Oil_PepperOnPizza.com
Homemade fragrant Basil oil

For preparing Homemade Basil Oil, you need a pot and a strainer to blanch the basil leaves, and a blender to puree the mixture. If you make fresh salads often, it is worthwhile investing in a salad spinner, to shake out the water clinging to your salad leaves, greens, and of course for this basil oil. It is the water content in basil oil that can develop botulism, so if you want the oil to last for a while and for safe consumption, the drier the basil, the better. I use a Salad spinner, and it has become indispensable!

For blanching the basil leaves, I have used my Pasta cooker. This is such a convenient piece of kitchen equipment, it not only helps to cook and strain pasta, but has a steamer and an additional small strainer. I use both strainers regularly to blanch or steam vegetables, spinach etc.

The homemade basil oil is full of flavour and aroma. Sprinkle it on soup, use as a dip for crusty bread, layer it on pita or any flatbread, sprinkle on tomatoes and mozzarella in a salad or or on sandwich, use it to flavour you tomato and cheese quesadilla, the options are so many!

Homemade Basil Oil

Recipes on this blog, using Homemade Basil Oil

Chilled Watermelon and Tomato Gazpacho with Basil Oil

Pink Watermelon Gazpacho_PepperOnPizza.com
Pink Watermelon Gazpacho

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easy Heirloom Tomato Salad - substitute Basil oil for the Basil dressing in the recipe

Quick Heirloom tomato salad with basil dressing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watermelon Bocconcini Arugula Salad with Basil Oil

Watermelon Bocconcini Arugula Salad with Homemade Basil Oil

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fennel Frond Pesto with Basil Oil

You could also make Basil Pesto, from the recipe on this blog, suitable for both Green and Purple basil.

Basil Pesto

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Homemade Basil Oil_PepperOnPizza.com

Aromatic and Easy Homemade Basil Oil

Course: condiments
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 16 minutes
Servings: 1 cup
Author: Sujata Shukla
Aromatic, Healthy and Easy Home made fresh Basil oil for use as a Salad Dressing, as a Dip, for flavouring Soups, Sandwiches and just about anything.
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 cup basil leaves - packed
  • ½ cup olive oil - (or Vegetable oil such as sunflower oil)
  • 1 pinch salt

Instructions

To make the Basil Oil

  • I used fresh Sweet basil for this recipe, and any other basil could be used instead, keeping in mind the flavours of each type. Separate the basil leaves from stalks and discard the stalks and any brown or yellow leaves.
    Basil leaves for basil oil
  • Blanch for a few seconds, as below, to retain the green colour of the leaves. After blanching and removing from the ice cold water, dry in a salad spinner or pat dry with paper towels.
    Blanch the basil
  • You need to remove as much of the water as possible without squeezing the basil leaves and letting the fragrance escape. Check and remove any remaining hard stalks.
  • Choose an oil with a mild flavour such as a sunflower oil or regular olive oil, as a strongly flavoured oil such as extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil would overpower the aroma of the basil.
  • Add the oil and dried basil and a pinch of salt, to the blender, and puree till smooth.Pour into a dry jar or bottle, cover and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
  • Bring to room temperature by setting out for 15 minutes or so, (depending on the weather!) before serving.
  • You may wish to filter the basil oil before storing in the fridge, to get a lovely green oil. I prefer to keep it unfiltered so that more of the basil goes into the dish and adds to the flavour and texture. If filtering, use a wire strainer lined with apiece of cheesecloth and discard the strained basil leaves.

To Blanch the Basil.

  • Blanching retains the green colour of the basil, and if this step is not carried out, the basil oil may take on a muddy greenish brown colour.
  • Bring a pot of water to boil. Keep a bowl ready with cold water to which you have added ice cubes. I have used my pasta maker which has an additional small strainer, just right to hold the basil leaves while blanching, and which I can just lift off and let the water drain back into the pot.
  • I made use of the water in the pot later on for cooking a basil flavoured pasta! Add the basil to the pot of boiling water, and let it boil for just 10- 30 seconds. Strain and immediately transfer to the bowl of ice cold water. Drain after 20 seconds. The basil would retain most of its green colour.

Notes

Choose an oil with a mild flavour such as a sunflower oil or regular olive oil, as a strongly flavoured oil such as extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil would overpower the aroma of the basil.

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Previous Post: « No Cook Cucumber Spinach Walnut Chilled Green Gazpacho
Next Post: Chilled Pink Watermelon Gazpacho with Homemade Basil Oil »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Peggy Boyle says

    August 31, 2017 at 6:07 am

    Hi Sujata! We miss you at knitting in Bethel! Be sure to stop by before you leave!! ~Peggy

    Reply
    • Sujata Shukla says

      August 31, 2017 at 6:08 am

      I will, for sure and thank you. This week or the next!

      Reply

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Hello There!

Hello from Sujata Shukla, the Author, Owner, Head Cook and Bottle washer at PepperOnPizza.com. The recipes I share with you are from fresh produce, vegetarian except for the occasional egg, usually made from scratch. Traditional Indian, specially Tamil recipes are my forte, along with a slew of Salads and Soups for a healthy lifestyle. Check out my Author Page!

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