Herbs for Culinary Use

Basil

One of the most populary culinary herbs is sweet basil. The best flavor of purple basil comes from the Red Rubin variety. Especially good in Thai dishes is the Thai Basil whose leaves have a spicy aniseed aroma with hints of mint and citrus. All can be found at most seed and plant nurseries. If you are unfamiliar with the nuances of different basils, your best bet is to start with the sweet basil (most often used in Pesto). Basil is available in fresh leaves and in dried leaves, which are also sometimes called rubbed. Fresh leaves may be stored in a cool place or in the refrigerator for a very short time.

Also indispensable for many Mediterranean dishes, the fresh leaf has a sweet, clovelike spiciness and is excellent with tomato dishes. Its flavor is strong enough to stand up to the pungency of garlic, so it is often paired together like in Pesto.

If you have an herb garden with an excess of basil, you can dry the leaves and store in a cool dry, dark place (dried basil will retain itsr flavor for six months). Add dried herbs at the beginning and during cooking.

Add fresh herbs only at the end of cooking or upon serving. Many species of the basil herb exist, but the most popular is sweet basil. Basil is considered one of the most important and highly used herbs in the culinary world and is popular in the cooking of many types of cuisine.

The strong, clove like flavor is essential to many Italian recipes and it is paired most often with tomatoes. Basil is primarily used in sauces, pizzas, salads and pasta dishes. It is also the main ingredient used in pesto.

Bay Leaves

Also know as sweet bay, sweet laurel, bay laurel and laurel leaf. Store in a cool, dry place, away from bright light, heat and moisture. Available fresh, dried whole leaves or ground dried leaves. Bay is probably the one herb that most cooks prefer using dried than fresh.

Add a bay leaf or two to marinades, stock, pâtés, stews, stuffings and curries. When poaching fish, add a bay leaf to the water. Store with rice in a tight fitting jar and the leaf will impart its flavor to the rice when cooked.

Bay leaves greatly improve flavor if you are cutting down on salt. Try adding a bay leaf or two when you boil potatoes to replace salt. Always remember to remove the whole bay leaf after cooking in any dish.

Fragrant bay leaves are a basic ingredient of bouquet garni, but they have other wonderful uses. Bay leaves may be added to many fish dishes, particularly salmon, custards, stews, rice dishes and especially soups.

Remember to always add leaves to the start of cooking and remove before serving.

Bouquet Garni

Also known as French Bouquet Garni. A dried bouquet garni is made from dried bay leaves, parsley, thyme leaves and black  peppercorns. Mix together 1 tablespoon of each herb in dried form and place one or two teaspoons in a piece of cheesecloth or a metal tea ball. Then you can use in your favorite broth or soup.

Bouquet Garni is a French term used for a bundle of herbs. It can be made from fresh or dried ingredients. For a fresh, use 3 sprigs of parsley, 1 small sprig of thyme leaves and 1 small bay leaf.

It is ok to use 1 dried bay leaf in with the remainder of fresh herbs. Tightly tie the bundle together using string or wrap securely in cheese cloth and tie. Use in soups, stews and sauces. Remove before serving.

Add to the beginning of cooking and take out before serving. If using with fish, add dill weed for added flavor. If you use cheese cloth, add one of the following: orange peel, cloves, fennel leaves, celery leaves, marjoram or peppercorns.

Chervil

Also known as Gourmet Parsley and Garden Chervil. Can be used as fresh leaves or dried. Store dried leaves in a cool, dry, dark place away from heat light and moisture. Dried chervil will keep for 6 months.

Chervil is a delicate herb with subtle taste. It has a slightly anise-like flavor that can be quickly lost in cooking. Garnish salads with it, but serve it at the last moment. Chervil is a very popular herb in France.

It is one of the classic ingredients in the traditional French herb blend, Fines Herbes and is very popular in French cuisine. It has a delicate flavor and is suitable wherever parsley is used. Chop the leaf into soups, omelettes (fish and egg dishes in the last ten to twelve minutes of cooking so its flavor is not cooked away), salads, dressings and add to chicken before roasting.

Chervil is better used as a fresh herb because during a cooking process a lot of its anise - like aroma and parsley taste is lost.

Chervil is extremely delicate but may be preserved in vinegar and oil.

Chives

Available fresh, frozen, and freeze dried. Store dried chives in a cool, dry, dark place away from sunlight, heat and moisture. Will keep for 6 months to 1 year.

Chives are a mild member herb of the onion family. Chives has many uses and can be added to potato salad, baked potatoes, soups, salads, omelets, dips and spreads, pastas and sauces.

Use it anywhere you want to add onion flavor without the harsh pungency of onion. Best if used fresh. The flavor is lost in drying. Add fresh or dried chives at the end of cooking to preserve the flavor. However, once you taste fresh chives, you will know there is no comparison of flavor. Soon, you will probably want a fresh pot of chives on your windowsill, even if you have nothing else in your herb garden. Chopped chives lift many foods above the ordinary.

Cilantro

Cilantro is also known as a Coriander Plant, Chinese Parsley, Yeun Sai and Japanese Parsley. It is readily available fresh or dried in most grocery markets.

Cilantro is used in many cuisine around the world. Most notably it is used to enliven Mexican and South American food as well as as Thai and Vietnamese.

This is a multiethnic herb that is used in everything from delicate Asian spring rolls to substantial Mexican dishes. Cilantro is the leaf part of the coriander plant. It's unique flavor is quite distinctive and can liven up even a simple chicken broth.

Cilantro has a faint overtone of anise and a somewhat delicate peppery taste. Use cilantro in tacos, salsas, soups, stews, chicken and rice, salads, tomato based sauces and as a garnish. Use sparingly.

The coriander seed can be used in tomato chutney, raratouille, frankfurtes and curries; also in apple pies, cakes, buscuits and marmalade. Whole seeds may also be added to soups, sauces and vegetable dishes. The seeds are often used in Middle Eastern, southern Asian, as well as Latin American cuisines. In India, both coriander seeds and leaves are extensively used in curries and spice mixes.

Dill

Dill is available in weed and seed, both fresh and dried. Store dried seeds and leaves in a cool, dry, dark place away from heat, light and moisture. Leaves will keep for six months. Seeds will keep indefinitely.

Dill or dill weed is an herb that produces clusters of small flowers from which dill seed is gathered and dill weed is obtained from the thin, feathery leaves. The light aroma of dill faintly resembles licorice.

Dill has a totally unique spicy green taste. Add whole seeds to potato salad, pickles, bean soups and salmon dishes. Ground seed can flavor herb butter, mayonnaise and mustard. The leaves go well with fish, cream cheese and cucumber.

Fines Herbs

Fines herbes are also known as Traditional French Herb Blend. Dried leaves should be stored in a cool, dry, dark place away from heat, light and moisture. Will keep for 6 months to 1 year after opening package.  Fines herbes is simply a traditional French blend of four herbs containing parsley, chervil, chives and tarragon. This wonderful blend can be made either from dried herb leaves or fresh herb leaves.

Fines herbes is particularly good with eggs, poached fish and chicken as well as stemmed vegetables and butter. Heat diminishes the taste of this blend, so be sure to add toward the end of cooking.

Lavender

The green-gray needle like leaves and spikes of fragrant purple-mauve flowers are known to almost everyone, but there are other varieties with green leaves and white, pink or dark purple flowers. Even if you don't use it in cooking, it makes a nice addition to any herb garden.

Lavender is an incredibly versatile herb for cooking. In today's upscale restaurants, fresh edible flowers are making a comeback as enhancements to both the flavor and appearance of food.

Flowers and leaves can be used fresh, and both buds and stems can be used dried. Lavender is a member of the mint family and is close to rosemary, sage, and thyme. It is best used with fennel, oregano, rosemary, thyme, sage, and savory.

English Lavender has the sweetest fragrance of all the lavenders and is the one most commonly used in cooking. Lavender has a sweet, floral flavor, with lemon and citrus notes. The potency of the lavender flowers increases with drying. In cooking, use 1/3 the quantity of dried flowers to fresh. Because of the strong flavor of lavender, a little goes a long way.

Lemongrass

Lemongrass is a tall perennial grass. Common names include lemon grass, lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, citronella grass, fever grass or Hieba Luisa amongst many others.

For soups and simmered dishes, cut the trimmed stalk at a very sharp angle into inch-long pieces, exposing its fragrant interior. Smash with the flat blade of a cleaver or heavy knife to bruise and release the aromatic oils before adding to these dishes.

For salads, cut with a sharp knife into very thin rounds, breaking up the fibers that run the length of the stalk. When slicing, if the outer layer seems fibrous, peel it off before proceeding. Such thinly sliced rounds of the inner stalk can be easily chewed with other salad ingredients for a refreshing burst of lemony herb flavor.

For curries, cut the stalk into thin rounds before pounding in a stone mortar to reduce to paste. Although lemon grass appears dry when you are slicing it, when crushed, you will see that it really is quite moist. Crushing breaks the juice sacs in the fibers and releases the aromatic oils that make lemon grass so special.

Mint

Mint is an herb that comes in many varieties such as peppermint, spearmint, apple mint, lemon mint and even chocolate mint. Mint came to the New World with colonists, who used it in tea for medicinal purposes.

Mint is used for seasoning lamb, vegetable such as carrots, bell pepper, and tomatoes, in yogurt dressings, and breads. It is also used in the Middle East for salads, tabouli and marinated vegetables.

Mint is good in soups, salads, sauces, plain meat, fish and poultry, stews, sweet or savory recipes, extremely good with chocolate or lemon based desserts. Add near the end of cooking for a better flavor.

Oregano

Oregano is also known as wild marjoram. It is the O. vulgare variety of the Origanum family. Oregano is available in fresh leaves from most grocery stores. This herb is also found dried in leaf form or ground. Store dry forms in a cool, dry, dark place.

Oregano is an herb that derives its name from two Greek words meaning "the joy of the mountain". It is a hardy member of the mint family that has been used for flavoring fish, meat and sauces since ancient times.

Oregano has a warm, aromatic scent and robust taste. It's uses include seasoning soups, stews, meat pies, pasta sauces and shellfish.

Parsley

Also known as curled or curly parsley, flat leaf parsley and Italian parsley. It is readily available in dried leaves and fresh leaves. Store dried leaves in a cool, dry, dark place. Store fresh in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Parsley is a great all around herb. It quickly adds a touch of color and texture to any recipe. The aroma and taste of parsley is very distinctive for a herb that is generally described as being mild and non obtrusive.

Parsley has a delicate favor that combines well with other herbs like basil, bay leaves, chives, dill weed, garlic, marjoram, mint, oregano and thyme.

Flat leaf or Italian is used primarily in cooking because of its more robust flavor and curly parsley is used primaryily for garnish. Add at the end of cooking for better flavor.

Rosemary

Rosemary is available in fresh leaves or dried whole leaves or dried ground. Store in a cool, dry, dark place. Ground rosemary will keep for up to 6 months and the leaves for up to 1 year, if stored properly.

Rosemary is an herb of the mint family. It is a small evergreen shrub that is native to the Mediterranean and likes warm climates, but will flourish in nearly any climate. It is produced all over the world.

Rosemary's aromatic flavor blends well with garlic and thyme to season lamb roasts, meat stews, and marinades. Rosemary also enlivens lighter fish and poultry dishes, tomato sauces, and vegetables.

Sage

Sage is available in fresh or dried leaves whole, crumbled (rubbed) or ground. Fresh sage can be refrigerated for about a week, while dried should be kept in an airtight container and stored in a cool dry place.

Sage is an herb from an evergreen shrub in the mint family. Fresh sage sprigs have long, narrow grayish green leaves and, although it is a member of the mint family, it has a musty yet smoky aroma.

Tarragon

Also known as French true tarragon. Fresh tarragon is only available during the summer and early fall months. Refrigerate fresh tarragon for up to a week and keep dried or powdered tarragon in a cool, dry place.

Tarragon is an exceptional herb. It has a subtle and sophisticated flavor and is an essential herb in French cuisine. It's flavor is delicate and almost licorice or anise-like. Tarragon is native to Siberia.

Tarragon, together with parsley, chervil, and chives make a traditional French blend, Fines Herbes. Tarragon is exceptional in egg dishes, poached fish, mushrooms and other vegetables.

Thyme

Fresh thyme can usually found during the summer months, but dried thyme is available year round at most grocery stores. Dried thyme should be kept in an airtight container in a cool dry place for up to six months.

Fresh garden thyme is an herb that has thin grayish green leaves and a subtle lemon, yet minty aroma and taste. Thyme is used in a wide variety of cuisine, but is most closely associated with French cuisine.

It is often used in soups and sauces, with meat, poultry or fish. It is also a very important component of herbes de Provence and bouquet garni. Fresh thyme has the most flavor used whole, with the stem.