Fresh herbs - how to use

lady_noluck

I've grown some mint, parsley, coriander, chives and thyme on my windowsill (Charlie Dimmock eat yer heart out!!) but I have no idea what to do with them now? I chop the chives up and use them in scrambbled eggs but that's it. Any ideas what else I can do with them and how I do it?



[threadbanner]box[/threadbanner]

competitionscafe

Parsley goes with just about everything - chop and add just before serving or mix with butter and garlic for garlic bread or with butter to serve with fish.
Mint I use in some salads, (eg: couscous salad) thyme is really good inside a roast chicken or chopped finely and added to a cottage pie, chives I would put in an omelette or in a salad or as you do with eggs, coriander: not a herb that everyone likes but I love it - good ingredient for most asian food (Indian, Thai, etc), can be added to rice, good in chicken noodle soup, for curries add it right at the end or even at the table. Good for you growing your own herbs - I tried to cultivate the supermarket 'growing' ones but they just died (or got eaten!) Now I get them in my weekly organic box - but I get dill every week and never really have a use for it unless I have some salmon steaks for a treat.

Try looking the herbs up on here for more info, recipes and uses:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/glossary/p.shtml?parsley
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/glossary/c.shtml?coriander
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/glossary/t.shtml?thyme
http://www.gardenguides.com/herbs/chives.htm

lady_noluck

Brilliant, I'll have a look at those sites. Talking of Salmon steaks, I love salmon so I might try to grow Dill. I buy salmon fillet thingys from Tesco. 2 Large bits boneless for about £2.50 in a plastic pack. They taste lovely.Is there any herbs I should be growing? I might try Rosemary, that's supposed to be nice.

competitionscafe

Depends what you like to eat. Rosemary is great with lamb and with potatoes (I think its easy to grow too). Tarragon is very nice with chicken. Basil is great too [but maybe not so easy to grow?] - you can make pesto, add it to salads, goes well with tomatoes (salad, pasta, basil and tomato soup, etc) I would say the most useful ones are basil, thyme, tarragon, coriander, mint, parsley, rosemary and chives.

bargainqueen_2

And don't forget my old friend oregano! He makes any tomato sauce, pasta dish and pizza a treat. I have a huge herbgarden because I am so passionate about them, and my dill grows well but like you I don't use it much. Stuffed eggs are good with it and some mustard though! I find basil easy to grow outside but impossible inside.
Rosemary is dead simple, I even bought some stalks with no root from the supermarket for cooking and stuck the surplus in the soil- it made roots and grows fine.
Herbs freeze really well so you can always cut some to make the plant grow better and just freeze it. Or, you can hang it upside down tied into bunches in your airing cupboard to dry and then store.
Mint is great first thing, just cut a stalk and put in a cup, add boiling water and hey presto mint tea- good healthy start to the day!
Mhh I love my herbs

arkonite_babe

If you have an abundance of herbs and don'[t want to lose them in the colder weather, you can freeze them. Chop them up or freeze whole, either way works. Add straight to food while cooking when frozen. Easy peasy!!

Liney_2

Use spriggs of thyme when you are roasting vegetables, just lay them over the top and remove before serving (the stalk is too woody to eat).
Also Sage Tea is apparently really good for sore throats, just pick off the leaves, pour over the boiling water, leave to infuse and then drink the liquid.
I am going to try freezing some of my herbs, i have only tried Chives before - any tips anyone?????

sarahmelita

I freeze all my herbs, I just chop them up and then put them in boxes. I have heard of people who freeze them with water, but I find it easier just to take some out of the box and sprinkle them in what I'm cooking.

GreenFingers_2

I tend to dry my herbs. Cut a bunch off the plant, a quick shake to remove spiders and other creatures, .... .... tie with string around the woody bits (e.g. Sage, Thyme, Rosemary etc) and then give it a quick rinse with cold water. Hang the bunch up somewhere preferably cool, dark and ventilated – a garage or shed is good enough. Allow two to three weeks to dry out thoroughly. I then run my fingers down the stems to remove the leaves and pop them into re-sealable plastic bags, squeeze the air out and pop into the freezer – Voila…. ... A years supply of herbs until the next harvest.

Plants like parsley and chives I grow in pots and only use fresh so not sure how these can be stored. My pot of chives is still doing well and is now living in the greenhouse but it will die back soon, possible by the end of October and then re-grow in the spring.

Everything you ever wanted to know about herbs, their growing habits, medicinal properties, cooking tips and uses and a trillion other things can be found at this exceptional site:-

http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/mgmh.html

squeaky

I've added this onto the website list in the Food section of the MEGA Index. Nice find thanks

Jay-Jay_4

For dill....cook some tagliatelle, heat some double cream in a pan with a pack of smoked salmon trimmings and some chopped dill. Don't let it boil, just heat it through for a couple of mins until the salmon has poached and the flavours have been absorbed by the cream. Don't worry if it's really runny, the pasta 'sucks up' most of the cream. Mix the sauce with the tagliatelle and serve with fresh grated parmesan and black pepper.


YUM!