herb help needed!

spaghetti_monster

Hi!
Today I did some flavoured vinegars for Christmas presents - and fantastic they look too (if I do say so myself!!......but of course it's all thanks to the OS board!)
Red wine vinegar, bit of cider vinegar, couple of bits of garlic and peppercorns. But what looks really nice are fresh sprigs of thyme, oregano, tarragon and basil.

So now after making a few bottles I've got all these herbs going spare (and I even bought curly parsley by mistake!)

Does anyone have any ideas what I could make to use them up?? I've never cooked anything with tarragon before......

thanks!
Alex x

Pink.

Hi alex,

Tarragon has a distinctive aniseed sort of flavour. It's lovely with chicken. The basil will go well with anything with a tomato sauce.

If you can't use the herbs while they're still fresh, chop them up and freeze them for when you need them.

Pink

spaghetti_monster

Thanks Pink!
I think the freezer will come in handy in this case, as I don't think I can do so much eating/cooking before they start to wilt! It just seems a shame as they look and smell so fantastic and fresh at the moment.

As for the tarragon, I'm veggie (well, fishatarian now - so I eat fish) and don't eat chicken so I'll have to find something else to do with it. Any fishy or veggie ideas would be appreciated!

Alex x

foreign_correspondent

I seem to remember tarragon also goes well in rich cheesy/eggy dishes? might also be good on salmon!

mikeywills

If I am realy being lazy I freeze in the bag it comes in, and just snap a bit off to go in whatever I am cooking.

If I am in the mood to make the effort I put them into ice cube trays, freeze and then bag separately.

It all depends on the mood, the amount of time, and the herb. Herbs like coriander, parsley (flat and curly), dill, chives, basil, are all ok to keep in bags.
Harder stem herbs are better to cube, such as mint, thyme, rosemary, oregano.

Happy freezing

MadCowMan

tarragon goes well with monkfish if you can get it

dannahaz

Ooh, Delia has a FAB recipe for chicken with Tarragon...let me just go and have a look....

Here it is http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/chicken-with-sherry-vinegar-and-tarragon-sauce,1320,RC.html

Edited to add:
While I was on the Delia site I saw a recipe for fast roast chicken with Tarragon, here it is http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/fast-roast-chicken-with-lemon-and-tarragon,1369,RC.html