Ocimum basilicum
basil • sweet basil
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Ocimum basilicum L. (Lamiaceae); basiliekruid (Afrikaans); besobla (Amharic); luo le, yu xiang cai (Chinese); basilic (French); Basilikum (German); babui tulsi (Hindi); basilico (Italian); bajiru (Japanese); kemangi, selaseh (Malay); alfavaca (Portuguese); albahaca (Spanish); horapha (Thai)
DESCRIPTION Sweet basil leaves are highly aromatic, usually with a rich, spicy aroma but sometimes with lemon, rose, camphor, cinnamon, woody or fruity aromas.1
THE PLANT A robust, leafy annual (ca. 0.6 m or 2 ft) with soft-textured, hairless leaves and small white flowers. The numerous hybrids, polyploids and cultivars often differ only in their volatile compounds.1–3 Holy basil or tulsi is O. tenuiflorum (O. sanctum),4 a short-lived perennial from India and Malaysia with hairy stems and leaves. Hoary basil or lemon basil is O. americanum (O. canum),4 a perennial African species with hairy stems and calyces. Thai basil or horapha refers to a form of O. basilicum with purple stems and brightly coloured bracts. Thai holy basil or kraphao is a cultivar of O. tenuiflorum and Thai lemon basil (O. ×citriodorum) is a hybrid between O. basilicum and O. americanum.
ORIGIN Tropical Asia.4 Cultivated since ancient times in India, the Near East, North Africa and later in Europe.
CULTIVATION Sweet basil is easily grown from seeds but warm conditions are required. Plant out in full sun in rich, well-drained soil at a spacing of 0.3 m (1 ft).
HARVESTING Fresh leaves are harvested regularly to encourage new growth. Drying may result in a loss of flavour – preservation in olive oil is a better option.
CULINARY USES Chopped leaves are used in salads, soups, omelettes, sauces, stuffings, meat dishes and especially pastas. The flavour of sweet basil goes well with tomato salad or any tomato dish. Especially famous is the Italian pesto, a sauce originating in Genoa made from fresh basil pounded with garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan and olive oil. A similar condiment (pistou) is made in Provence (but without pine nuts). Horapa is the most popular basil in Thailand, where generous amounts of fresh leaves are added to curries, salads and stir-fries. It has an anise or liquorice aroma. Húng quế, a similar cultivar but with a cinnamon flavour, is used in Vietnamese cuisine. Thai lemon basil (maenglak or kemangie) is commonly used in seafood dishes, also in Malaysia and Indonesia. In Indian and Thai cooking, holy basil is mostly added to fish, poultry and meat dishes and is typically cooked to release the flavour.
FLAVOUR COMPOUNDS The traditional sweet basil aroma is due to linalool, methylchavicol and/or 1,8-cineole. The sweetness is ascribed to methylchavicol (= estragole), a phenylpropanoid considered safe only when used in small amounts. The aroma of some cultivars is due to eugenol (clove-scented) or citral (lemon-scented).
NOTES The attractive purple-leaved basil (Ocimum basilicum var. purpurascens) can be used in the same way as the green variety.
1. Simon, J.E., Morales, M.R., Phippen, W.B., Vieira, R.F., Hao, Z. 1999. Basil: a source of aroma compounds and a popular culinary and ornamental herb. In: Janick, J. (Ed.), Perspectives on new crops and new uses. ASHS Press, Alexandria.
2. Paton, A. 1992. A synopsis of Ocimum L. (Labiatae) in Africa. Kew Bulletin 47: 403–435.
3. Paton, A., Putievsky, E. 1996. Taxonomic problems and cytotaxonomic relationships between varieties of Ocimum basilicum and related species (Labiatae). Kew Bulletin 51: 1–16.
4. Grayer, R.J., Kite, G.C., Goldstone, F.J., Bryan, S.E., Paton, A., Putievsky, E. 1996. Infraspecific taxonomy and essential oil chemotypes in sweet basil, Ocimum basilicum. Phytochemistry 43: 1033–1039.
5. Telci, I., Bayram, E., Yilmaz, G., Avci, B. 2006. Variability in essential oil composition of Turkish basils (Ocimum basilicum L.). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 34: 489–497.