hi all, hope everything is growing. I got a problem last night (prob. a good one). I recieved a few herb plants from one of my alloty pals. Prob is, if I manage to grow on with success what do I use them on. I did get a few so here goes, feverfew,chamomile,tarragone,marjoram,thyme,strawberry sticks,basil,coriander and sage. at this stage of the season I dont have a lot of room left so I will pass some on.
Cheers,
jock-edin
Basil is fab with tomatoes - in salad, in pasta sauce etc.
Coriander is great in thai and indian curries - love the stuff, and is also ok with toms.
Sage you can use for roast stuffing - I used it with duck once, but it goes with lots of things. Goes with pork too very well. :P :P
Feverfew is not really used in cooking. Apparently you can make tea from Feverfew and this is meant to help relieve a migrane. Sorry but I don't have a recipe for the tea. I believe you can also eat the leaves in a sandwich but don't think it would be very tasty! Feverfew was one of the first herbs I grew and it was very easy to grow, the flowers looked very pretty, like minature daisies. But the following years I got Feverfew plants sprouting up all over the place (my Borage did the same thing) and in the end I regarded it as a weed!
I agree, Basil is great with sliced tomatoes, a splash of extra virgin olive oil and some salt and pepper, also add slices of mozarella cheese (the soft kind bought in a bag in liquid) and sliced Avocado pear, yummy! A great starter or light lunch.
Tarragon, Marjoram and Thyme is nice with chicken. Put some sprigs in the roasting pan with a chicken and it flavours the meat nicely. Or chop it finely and sprinkle over the chicken before cooking. I believe it is also nice sprinkled on fish before cooking. You could also add sprigs to a bottle of vinegar or olive oil to flavour the oil to make salad dressings.
Hope this gives you some ideas. :) :)
Chamomile tea. So soothing.
I like to add a few sprigs of herbs to the spud when I boil them. Experiment with different herbs to see what you like best.
Marjarom is another good one for pasta dishes. Although you cannot beat basil (my favourite!).
Plant your basil near the toms as it's supposed to improve their flavour.
I'm with Jesseveve on Feverfew. Unless you suffer from migraine, dispose of it immediately, it's an almost ineradicable weed.
On herbs in general, I think we tend to get a little hidebound - there are few herbs which only go with a specific type of meat or veg, most are worth trying at least once (unlike incest and folk dancing), and the modern habit of adding herbs to salads is one I wholeheartedly approve of (don't try it with bay leaves though...).
Add a whole onion and a couple of cloves of garlic, whole, inside the chicken, by the way....
Herbs should be a part of any lottie in my opinion - if only to attract the bees ;D. The sage and thyme are both flowering on our patch now and you should see the number of bees. They get used to visiting and so pollinate everything else - very useful!!!
Uses for herbs are as varied as the people that grow them, and if you do grow them you end up using them more than you think you will.
Sage - use it fresh in a marinade for pork, chicken or rabbit. Use it fresh or dried in a stuffing - not just for turkey, but in home made chicken kiev - v. nice ;).
Thyme - tie bundles together and let them dry in a pantry or cupboard. Then tap lightly over cheese on toast (it falls like pepper) for supper. Add it to soups or stews or to stuffings.
Marjoram - use it also in recipes which ask for oregano. Few people can tell the difference between the two when dried. I like this especially in bread - half a teaspoon in a 2lb loaf really works nicely.
Corriander - used in indian food especially. Gives a nice fresh clean flavour to food - can also be used in a salad.
Basil - greek basilius - meaning king. Really is the king of herbs. Best used fresh in salads or ANYTHING containing tomatoes. My favourite salad of all time is slices of tomato, red onion and strips of basil, sprinkled with sea salt and drizzled with extra vergin olive oil and basamic vinegar :P :P.
Chamomile - just started growing this myself. I love the smell of chamomile and am quite partial to the tea. Harvest the flower heads and put them out to dry in the sun. Then keep them in an airtight box until needed. Put them in a pot as you would tea leaves and brew for 5 mins before drinking. Yummy with honey - which brings us back to the bees!!!
Enjoy your herbs,
:-* Tricia
Don't have masses to add on the herb front other than lucky you receiving so many as gifts! I wouldn't be without my thyme, mint, oregano, basil and sage - use them in alsorts of dishes, any others I grow are a bonus. Wripped up in a salad - devine or if you like couscous then shred a couple of handfuls of soft leaved herbs herbs and toss through. I am sure I read somewhere about manking basil ice cream...well, whatever turns you on :P. Homemade sage stuffing in any birds (ahem) and with rabbit and game - lush! And I use thyme in the same way. I don't use anything with fish - love fish fresh from the sea I'm afraid. Chamomile tea, so refreshing. And my sage is also in flower at the moment and looks wonderful and is covered in bees. I take cuttings from it every year, and sure enough I have it all over my garden! I don't grow herbs at the allotment.....yet....only I like them close at hand when cooking and like 'em fresh as can be.
enough said-get shut of the feverfew. Can I put in a plea for summer savory?-seldom seen for sale but just lovely with fresh or dried beans.
And also `Alecost`- not much culinary value but hardy-cut the leaves/stems hard back and shove them on the greenhouse floor-the scent is lovely.
Stephan
Like EJ I'm a 'right by the back door' grower of herbs so I can grab and cook! I do intend to grow more herbs at the lottie that are good for drying/freezing. Lavender especially for drying. I'm lucky to have inherited a standard bay tree that must be 40 odd years old in my back garden which is wonderful.
thanks for all the ideas on my herb problem. I will enjoy using them on the recipes, look forward to the wifes cooking.
I know I'm new to gardening but I have seen feverfew effectivly controlled by growing them in a butler sink.
As for making the headache cure it's best made in tea form as eating the leaves can sometimes produce mouth sores. To make the tea just boil the leaves for a ten minutes in hot water(sounds obvious I know), to take away the bitterness add sugar or honey. Not ideal if your preganant though as it thins the blood.
TrailRat
Is probably superfluous but no one has mentioned Parsley! The flat leaved one is best for flavour but even the curly one has its place. However, one suggestion, get your wife to plan or sow it!
Eventually, someone will tell you why! :D
Why Muddy Boots, Why??? Don't tell me there is something vital I should have known all these years - I only grow curly but (whatever the reason :o) I've always soon it and cut it myself - not Mr W - have I reason to be thankful for this coincidence ??? ::)
lol Wicker...couple of different reasons I have heard, if you can grow parsley easily, means you will have lots of kids, or if the woman can grow it, it means she wears the trousers in the household! ;D
Well the parsley I sowed never came up!! :)
Me wear the trousers, EJ ?? Fat chance!! It's equal shares in this partnership I can tell you and Mr W wouldn't argue with that (or do I mean wouldn't dare argue??). We only had two children - well I only had two .... oh oh better stop this vein of thought. Old Wives Tales - Bah! Humbug!
Parsley? The plant of the devil - the only safe time to sow is apparently on Good Friday, as the devil has no power over any living thing on that holiest of days. It takes such a long time to germinate, because it has to travel to the devil seven times before it can emerge.
Hee-hee! Cackles off into the sunset ------ :)
All best - Gavin