A Taste for Herbs. Sue Goetz
of your favorite herb? This would be a moment I wish these pages were scratch and sniff.
BASIL: a clove-like, anise flavor. Very strong with recognizable pungency.
CHIVES: delicate onion taste. Can be overpowered by strong flavored herbs, so it is best to use as a single herb in recipes to enjoy the oniony flavor.
CILANTRO: strong, lemony-lavender taste. Unique and easily lingers its aroma into other ingredients.
DILL: light, familiar smell of pickles. Delicate flavor, very distinct fragrance.
MARJORAM: mellower, sweeter version of oregano. Can be used as a substitute for parsley or oregano in recipes.
MINT: potent, cool and refreshing. Adds a note of sweetness on the tongue.
OREGANO: strong, aromatic, familiar flavor in Italian cooking.
PARSLEY: mild taste. The flat-leaved variety is more flavorful. Good for adding color in recipe mixes.
ROSEMARY: pine-like taste that holds up strong in cooking and roasting.
SAGE: dry, earthy flavor, familiar in poultry stuffing.
THYME: pungent flavor with an earthy, lemon-peel aroma. Can be used in place of oregano or rosemary.
IN THE GARDEN
Think of your garden as a flavor producer. We know what a fresh vine-ripened tomato tastes like or a fresh-picked strawberry popped in your mouth. The next level of flavor in the garden comes from the parts of the plants we use as seasonings: the leaves, stems and seeds. Essential oils in the plant tissues give off pungent and sweet flavorings. That’s where herbs come in. Herb plants grown in the garden are loaded with fragrance. Essential oils can be in the entire plant from the leaves, stems, seeds and right down to the roots. These micro droplets of oil in the plants are made up of chemical combinations that create distinct fragrance and flavor. Nature is a wonderful alchemist.
Let’s take a peek at Nature’s science at work:
BASIL: In that simple basil leaf you throw in pesto there is camphor, estragole, eugenol, plus a few others. Those components combine to create basil’s distinct scent. You often hear basil’s flavor described as clove-like. The small, woody seed pod that we know as the spice clove is also heavy in eugenol, so our nose smells that similarity that connects the aroma and flavor back to basil.
MINT: Fresh mint leaves can have up to 70% menthol in their natural oil. Menthol is a stimulant and causes a sensation of cold in the mouth and on the skin. (The mint in that mojito or mint julep is actually chilling the alcohol for you.) Another bit of flavor magic: Mint alone can be a bit stinging on the tongue because of the high percentage of menthol. But adding sweet flavor to it takes away the sting.
TARRAGON, STAR ANISE, FENNEL:
Sometimes there are higher percentages of certain organic components that are also in other plants, causing us to smell or taste something similar in two or more herbs – like the licorice taste of tarragon, anise star and fennel. It is the organic compound estragole which is an isomer of anethole. Both have the familiar aroma and are commonly found in plants that taste like licorice. The balance that sets it all apart is that fennel is sweeter in its licorice flavor because it has less of the pungency of estragole than tarragon.
LAVENDER AND LEMON: One of the best examples of how the chemical similarities of plants can affect the flavor of food is the mixing of lavender with lemon. Lavender can be a bit medicinal in taste because of the high camphor notes in the plant’s essential oil components. It is earthy, almost a bit musty in flavor. Lemon is high in limonene, which gives us that tart, sour bite on the tongue. Most lavenders (based on the soil they are grown in) have a small percentage of the same component of lemons (limonene). So, there is a small thread of taste and aroma relationship that can enhance each other. Adding lemon to lavender tones down the mustiness and pungency of the camphor, making some culinary lavenders taste sweeter. The acidity of lemon or lime also kicks up flavor when herbs have been simmered or lost some of their flavor strength after harvesting.
Aromatherapists know this by way of healing with essential oils. Mixing one oil with another makes each plant’s healing qualities better. But it’s important to know the characteristics of each and how they work together. And so it is the same with culinary blending.
TOO MUCH, TOO LITTLE, OR JUST RIGHT?
In culinary blending, mixing salt, vinegars and other strong bases with herbs can enhance the better side of them, or it can go so far as to destroy their flavor. Call it a delicate balance, something you learn very quickly when you’ve added way too much cilantro or rosemary to something. You’ve kicked in too much of those essential oils that overpower the taste buds. Fun stuff, really.
Why talk about this in a simple herb flavor book? It’s all about mixology and not just throwing this plant with that plant and hoping vinegar makes it better. Take a second look at some of your favorite herbs and what it is you like about them. Sweet? Then they can be used in desserts or fruity infused waters. Spicy hot? Use them in rich meat dishes, sauces, heavy vegetables and meat-based stews. Get to know your favorite herbs and think about the base flavors you are tasting. Becoming familiar with a single herb will help you blend and mix it to your personal taste with other things for a culinary adventure.
I just find it fascinating how those simple plants we call herbs are real powerhouses of flavor. So why not capture that fresh, pure flavor of herbs from the garden and use it to season our food?
Let the mixology begin!
PART ONE
Grow!
ONE
Growing Herbs
20 favorites for every-sized garden…indoors too
I love the details of a garden… how pathways are laid out, the stonework; and the growing, changing, giving parts of a garden, the plants. I especially love the fragrance and flavor of herbs. The wonderful thing is that you don’t have to have an enormous plot of land to grow herbs. Your herb garden can be as simple as a container overflowing with mint beside a stately rosemary in pottery. The end goal is that you have gathered plants in your garden that not only delight your senses in the garden, but have multiple uses for you beyond the garden.
HERB GARDEN BASICS
(general garden and growing notes)
SOIL: Herbs in the garden prefer well-draining soil. Organic matter like compost added to the soil helps change the soil’s structure and replenishes nutrients important to plant growth.