Finishing Sauces and Cooking Liquids with Parsley Purée

Parsley purée can be used as a thickener and flavoring for light-textured sauces using one of two methods. The first consists of blanching and puréeing parsley, then working it through a fine-mesh drum sieve. The purée is then whisked into made-to-order sauces as needed. Although convenient to use at the last minute, working the purée through the sieve is laborious and time-consuming.

The second method involves pouring hot cooking liquids, stocks, or court-bouillon over raw parsley leaves in a blender and puréeing at high speed for 2 minutes; an immersion blender can also be used. The hot sauce is then quickly strained through a strainer or chinois. This method sidesteps the drum sieve and captures the flavor of the parsley at its freshest, but it has the disadvantage of requiring considerable last-minute manipulation.