Nitrate & Nitrite Free Basil-Pesto Arugula Salad
This vibrant green salad is everything you want on a warm day — peppery arugula, crisp radishes, cool cucumber, and a bold homemade pesto that pulls it all together. The pesto itself is built from fresh basil, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil, with tiger nut flour standing in as a nut-free thickener that gives the sauce a satisfying, spoonable body. Every single ingredient here is whole and unprocessed, which means no hidden preservatives or cured-meat additives to worry about — just clean, real food from start to finish. That matters more than people realize, since nitrates and nitrites sneak into a surprising number of packaged dressings and processed toppings that might otherwise seem harmless on a salad. Making the pesto from scratch in a food processor takes only minutes, and the result is far more flavorful than anything from a jar. A final drizzle of lemon juice and a pinch of flaky sea salt tie everything together with a brightness that makes this feel restaurant-worthy. It's the kind of salad that actually satisfies.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the pesto
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp tiger nut flour
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
For the salad
- 5 oz baby arugula (about 6 cups loosely packed)
- 4 radishes, thinly sliced
- 1 cup cucumber, thinly sliced into half-moons
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- flaky sea salt, to taste
For serving
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, torn (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine the 2 cups packed basil leaves, garlic cloves, tiger nut flour, 2 tbsp lemon juice, and fine sea salt in a food processor. Pulse 8–10 times until the mixture is coarsely chopped and the garlic is broken down.
- 2
With the processor running, stream in the 1/3 cup olive oil in a slow, steady pour until the pesto comes together into a thick, spoonable paste — it will be slightly textured, not completely smooth. Scrape down the sides and pulse once more to incorporate. Taste and adjust salt if needed.
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