Picada: Spanish Parsley and Garlic Sauce

Picada is a dense pounded paste of fried bread, almonds or hazelnuts, lemon, garlic, olive oil and spices from Spain. Variations are made with saffron, chocolate, or herbs. Picada has a similar texture to pesto, and is traditionally used as a thickening agent or seasoning for meats, seafood or vegetable dishes. Find the video, recipe, and printable recipe PDF below! 

 
Picada-2.jpg
 

Yield: 1 cup

Method

  1. Mash the garlic and salt together in a mortar with a pestle until the garlic is completely broken into a fine paste.

  2. Add the parsley leaves gradually in small pinches, smashing them completely before adding more. The herbs will go from looking fluffy to dark green and wet to a green paste. It takes a long time; salt helps. So do friends. Stir in the olive oil.

  3. To store, spoon the picada into ice cube trays in 1 tablespoon portions and pour thin layer of oil on top of each portion. Freeze until solid.

  4. Transfer the frozen picada portions to a freezer bag, squeeze out the air, and seal. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw before using or add directly to the pan for dishes that will be simmering.

Source: Daniel Olivella, as presented at the 2019 Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives® conference.

 Published with permission of the author. All rights reserved.

Ingredients

2 - 4 ea. Garlic cloves, medium, roughly chopped

1 tsp. Salt

3 cups, Parsley leaves, curly

1 tsp. Lemon zest

½ - ¾ cup Extra-virgin olive oil

This recipe and video were produced by The Culinary Institute of America as an industry service,
thanks to the generous support of the International Olive Council.