Topic: Coriander

[plotstoeat]

I use a lot of coriander in cooking and it is very versatile as all parts of the plant can be used. I have grown it for many years but two problems persist. 1.How do I avoid the strong feathery leaves of coriander that seem to rapidly take over from the initial milder flat leaves? 2. How do I get thick roots to use for culinary purposes? I have posted this topic before with no responses so I am hoping there are others out there who love Thai food as much as me.

[DrJohnH]

My limited experience of coriander is that some varieties are grown for seed, some for leaves.  Maybe if you took some whole coriander seed from a spice supplier and tried to grow leaves, that might be a problem...  That said, I've been growing coriander in some very un-UK places (South East Texas/Middle East). 

I did try Coriander in the UK last summer using a plant from a supermarket grocery herbs section and it seemed OK, although it seemed tricky to settle in once transplanted (it did not seem happy at first, but settled down and grew on after I cut back most/nearly all of the leaves).

As to roots- no idea...  My realm is Mexican food, not Asian- is it the same plant we are talking about?  Will stems suffice as opposed to roots?

Dr John

[galina]

http://www.thai-food-online.co.uk/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=365

It seems you can buy the roots.  Could they be planted up?  Indoors?  I have never seen these sort of roots on ordinary coriander.

I use a lot of coriander in cooking and it is very versatile as all parts of the plant can be used. I have grown it for many years but two problems persist. 1.How do I avoid the strong feathery leaves of coriander that seem to rapidly take over from the initial milder flat leaves? 2. How do I get thick roots to use for culinary purposes? I have posted this topic before with no responses so I am hoping there are others out there who love Thai food as much as me.

[plotstoeat]

[As to roots- no idea...  My realm is Mexican food, not Asian- is it the same plant we are talking about?  Will stems suffice as opposed to roots?]
I don't know much about the different varieties Dr John but I am sure they make a difference. I believe stems can be used but aren't as strong favour. I have taken roots from shop plants recently but they dried out and I had to grind them.

[plotstoeat]

Thanks for the link Galina. That's the first pic I have seen of coriander root. They are quite fleshy as I suspected. The plant must be v large. A friend is going to try to get some from an asian supermarket tomorrow. We don't have many up here.

[plotstoeat]

Found a very good article:
http://shesimmers.com/2011/07/how-to-grow-coriander-for-the-roots-to-use-in-thai-cooking.html

[Vinlander]

Found a very good article:
http://shesimmers.com/2011/07/how-to-grow-coriander-for-the-roots-to-use-in-thai-cooking.html

Very good - and it's worth mentioning that the freezing advice works on many levels - anything you are going to smash before you eat it will be better after freezing because that smashes the cells for you - I use this technique a lot - eg.  to get more juice off the seeds of any grape variety that is very jelly-like - it also helps making gooseberry juice - but you still need pectinase after reducing the seed count.

NB. With fruit you have to be very careful to keep oxygen (browning) away from the defrosting process - don't take it out of the sealed bag before it's at least reached 100% slush, process immediately and have some citric acid ready if it starts to brown. I've considered using a CO₂ injector but my quantities don't really justify it.

Cheers.

[BarriedaleNick]

The only thing I can add to this thread is never to try transplanting coriander and to try different varieties.
Just ordered some Coriander Calypso Cilantro - from Nickys Nursery.  Coriander just tends to bolt for me so I am hoping that this wont and that also it will provide some decent roots.  My reasoning is that if you can cut it 3 or 4 times it should lay down some bigger roots.

[johhnyco15]

my thinking is if you sow late in the year say september as i do the plants stay small however under the soil the roots are going great guns to get the plant ready for spring then as nick says if you keep cutting the roots should grow to feed the new growth hope this helps

[plotstoeat]

The only thing I can add to this thread is never to try transplanting coriander and to try different varieties.
Just ordered some Coriander Calypso Cilantro - from Nickys Nursery.  Coriander just tends to bolt for me so I am hoping that this wont and that also it will provide some decent roots.  My reasoning is that if you can cut it 3 or 4 times it should lay down some bigger roots.

Yes Barrie I had heard that it doesn't translant well. I like to grow some for seeds to use both for culinary purposes and sowing the next year. I have same thoughts as you re cutting a few times. Don't know much about different varieties so I hope you will come back to us with your results. I will try another variety to compare results. It's such a great herb; can't have too much. Even looks nice when it flowers.

[peanuts]

Nobody has mentioned the delight of the fresh green seeds. I allow coriander to grow like a week in one corner of our veg patch, mused in with rocket, both of which self-seed very easily.  So I have a constant supply of both throughout the year.  We love the fresh green seeds when they are juicy.  Add them to salads, or rice. 

[plotstoeat]

Against all good advice I have to confess that yesterday I transplanted some coriander. My excuse is that it was a lovely day to be in the GH and there was nothing else to do. Some shop bought coriander had collapsed so I cut off the leaves and transplanted the roots into a large container. I am not expecting it to work but we gardeners love a challenge. Has anyone else successfully transplanted coriander?

[johhnyco15]

this is my coriander ready for its first harvest of this year

[squeezyjohn]

Nobody has mentioned the delight of the fresh green seeds. I allow coriander to grow like a week in one corner of our veg patch, mused in with rocket, both of which self-seed very easily.  So I have a constant supply of both throughout the year.  We love the fresh green seeds when they are juicy.  Add them to salads, or rice. 

Fresh green seeds were a revelation ... sweet and halfway between the leaf and dried seed taste.  My best invention is candied green coriander seeds (like making candied peel or angelica) - the most delicious aromatic little balls for decorating cakes and biscuits with.

[Elfeda]

this is my coriander ready for its first harvest of this year

Thats lovely,is it hardy..? can I sow now outside?

[Vinlander]

Fresh green seeds were a revelation ... sweet and halfway between the leaf and dried seed taste.  My best invention is candied green coriander seeds (like making candied peel or angelica) - the most delicious aromatic little balls for decorating cakes and biscuits with.

Now you've got me wondering where I can get cardamom seeds that haven't been dried.

Cheers.

PS. Talking about using fresh versus normal dried - here's something the other way round - has anyone ever freeze-dried chopped/grated green chilli in a home freezer? Does it work? I suspect that just drying them with heat would be less successful.

I often buy Tesco Green Thai curry readymeals, they taste good but the chilli hit seems to be disappearing - it made me  consider freezing some green chillies, but dried can be more convenient.

[Obelixx]

I freeze spare chillies whole but chopping them into ice cube trays makes sense for portion control.  Freezing makes them hotter.

Sowed some coriander sativum this morning and hope to get shoots, roots and seeds - gotta be an optimist to garden.

[ed dibbles]

Chillies freeze very well. I simply put my surplice whole in a freezer bag bringing one or two out when I want to add chilli to a dish. The great thing is that you can cut them up still  frozen without your fingers getting coated in large amounts of capsaicin.

I have never had much success with coriander. Somehow only a few and often none at all come up so I must be doing something wrong. No matter as it is not one of my favourite herbs anyway.

[BarriedaleNick]

this is my coriander ready for its first harvest of this year

Nice work mate.  When did you sow that and is it in a GH??

[plotstoeat]

I can now report that I successfully transplanted coriander in the GH. Took a long time to grow but is looking okay now.  I will keep taking off the leaves in the hope of developing strong roots. Have learnt so much in this thread. Some great posts