Cut herbs quickly on a moist wooden chopping board to preserve their flavors.
Herbs add a dash of color and flavor to food and are a healthy alternative to salt as a seasoning. They can also make food easier to digest. Use the more pungent varieties sparingly and add tender green herbs to a dish just before serving.
Herbs lose their flavor quickly if handled incorrectly. Use them soon after they’ve been picked or purchased and always chop the tender leaves with care.
• Chop herbs on a moistened wood or plastic chopping board. The flavors can be dulled by the wood of a dry cutting board.
• Harvest herbs at midday, when their essential oils are most intense.
• Wrap herbs in a damp dish towel before putting them in the refrigerator’s vegetable drawer, where they’ll keep for 1–3 days.
• Dry or freeze herbs for longer storage.
Freeze fresh herbs in an ice cube tray ready to add to soups or sauces as required.
• Parsley is the most popular herb and ubiquitous in most kitchens. It is used to season soups, stews, casseroles, salads, pasta and potato dishes. Just add scissored or chopped sprigs near the end of the cooking time, or tear the leaves with your fingers.
• Fragrant basil has a pungent taste that works well in sweet and spicy foods such as stir-fries and spaghetti sauce. Simply tear it apart or cut it into strips to add to salads and marinades, or blend it in a food processor to make pesto.
• Cilantro is one of the most widely used herbs in the world. Its strong flavor adds a boost to Asian, Latin American, Middle Eastern and southwestern U.S. cuisines. Sprinkle the fresh leaves on a finished dish just before serving.
• Rosemary has an astringent, clean scent and tastes great in Mediterranean cooking. Add the needle-like leaves to lamb, wild game and pork, or use the stripped branches as skewers to grill or barbecue meat, poultry or fish.
• Fresh chervil adds a delicious mild aniseed flavor to salads, soups and herb butter, as well as egg and cheese dishes.
• Dill complements fish, shellfish, cucumber salad, vinaigrette and pickles. Sprinkle on before serving.
• Tarragon is native to Siberia and Asia. Introduced to Spain by the Arabs, it was later used in many recipes developed by the French. It adds a distinctive flavor to vinegar, mustard and béarnaise sauce, and goes well with poultry and shellfish. French tarragon has a more delicate flavor than the Russian variety. Its bittersweet and spicy aroma is lost when dried.
• Bay leaves are widely used in soups, stews and spaghetti sauce, but their aromatic flavor is also great with fish and in many Indian dishes like biryani. Bay leaves stimulate the appetite and also act as a preservative. You usually add the leaves whole and remove them before serving.
• Marjoram aids digestion and goes well with meat dishes and summer vegetables such as eggplant, tomatoes and peppers. It can’t be frozen but, when dried, it can be added during cooking.
• There are many different varieties of mint but spearmint and peppermint are the most frequently used. Mint highlights the fine taste of spring vegetables, peas, green beans and salads, and adds a fresh, elegant touch to desserts and fruit bowls. It is also a traditional accompaniment to lamb.
• Oregano belongs to the same family as marjoram and is regularly served on pizza and in tomato dishes. Use the herb sparingly—it is easy to overdo it.
• Add peppery-tasting sage to roast poultry and pork. It also goes well with tomatoes, beans and pasta.
• Chives taste like mild onions. Use them to dress up salads, vegetable soups, sour cream, potato and leafy salads, and mashed potatoes, as well as scrambled eggs. The younger the shoots, the more tender the consistency and the more intense the taste.
• Use thyme in soups and stews, with vegetables and in casseroles and fish dishes. Fresh lemon thyme goes well with fish and poultry.
GROW HERBS in decorative ceramic POTS ON THE WINDOWSILL.
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A bouquet garni of fresh parsley, thyme, rosemary and bay, tied together with string, will add depth of flavor to a stock, soup or casserole. Remove it before serving.
