Everyone loves it: this sauce is a hit, but it's much fattier than you might think.
The French have adopted it en masse in just a few years, and it's undoubtedly found in many of our kitchen cupboards. Easy to prepare, quick to prepare, it also has the gift of seducing a large part of the family. No, we're not talking about the sacrosanct tomato sauce that continues to win over the public, but rather the one that has become its number one challenger.
With more than 60 million jars sold last year, it's even established itself as the second most consumed sauce in the world. In France, sales volumes jumped 20% last year, according to several consumer institutes. The reasons are numerous, but experts note in particular that it has overtaken Bolognese sauce, another sign that meat consumption continues to decline.
Although the French are eating less meat after significant inflation in recent years, the question of price does not seem to be the number one criterion since this trendy sauce remains quite expensive: between 8 and 11 euros per kilo compared to 3 to 5 euros for a ready-made Bolognese sauce. And if you are looking for a lighter sauce than the versions with meat, you are completely wrong!
Because beware, pesto, since that's what we're talking about, isn't as healthy as it looks... According to nutritionist Jean-Michel Cohen, some commercially sold pestos contain nearly 56g of fat per 100g. "Two tablespoons of this preparation contain about 20g of fat," he warns. That's 5 times more than a hollandaise sauce, which does contain butter!
However, there's a caveat: while it's fatty, pesto sauce still has some advantages, according to the specialist, even if you choose a commercial version that doesn't contain olive oil. "There's nothing better than a pasta dish with pesto. Unfortunately, I'm a nutritionist, so I have to look. It has 500 calories per 100 grams, which is still a bit of a challenge," the famous nutritionist reluctantly admits while inspecting a jar of Barilla sauce. "Butter is 700 calories! But there are good ingredients: here I have good quality oil (sunflower for the Barilla sauce), cashew nuts, parmesan, and a little olive oil, of course."
The Yuka app confirms this mixed assessment, awarding a score of 30/100 to this same jar of classic Barilla Genovese pesto. The product is even in category 4 "ultra-processed," with a Nutriscore of E. The reasons: a high fat content (47%), saturated fatty acids (5.3%), and salt (3.2g/100g).
So it's clearly all a question of dosage. Before emptying the jar directly onto your pasta, consider this little reminder from the nutritionist: "Pesto sauce is a great product, even good for your health. Be careful, though, you have to be gentle when serving. It's 2 teaspoons each time. Otherwise, go ahead and add butter, oil, and why not some petroleum," he concludes ironically. We get it, with pesto, we go... easy!
L'Internaute
