I make a traditional pesto and use it for all kinds of recipes. I adore this pesto for soups, pasta, veggies.
However, when I use it for pizza, I get this weird paradox where everything is too salty, but still feels like it needs salt. For toppings I use fresh mozzarella, roasted red peppers and parboiled asparagus. I don’t season them to offset the saltiness.
Any suggestions on how to make this pizza perfect?
Do you need more acid? A little lemon juice or vinegar may help with the saltiness.
This was my first thought, too, like you took the thought out of my mind. I agree, OP. Lemon or Lime juice, or even a small splash of high quality vinegar can make all the difference.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_Fat_Acid_Heat
Balance is so important in cooking.
I will give this a try! Maybe thin out the pesto with citrus or balsamic. Thanks for weighing in!
Balsamic drizzle on some pesto pizza, now that sound a like a winner,
Maybe add some umami to give it a non-salty savory touch?
TBH the solution is to salt the pesto less and salt your toppings more, probably by just adding finishing salt after cooking the pizza. Also consider using a nonfresh mozzarella, which generally has more flavor. While the creaminess of fresh is nice, I find it to be way too bland most of the time.
This problem is the exact reason why I stick to pepperoni and banana peppers. They are inherently flavorful and salty.
I’ve tried adding crushed red pepper for the heat, but it doesn’t change the salt balance issue.
Anchovy
