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How to Use Fresh Herbs – Try These Tips
Small as they are, herbs are pleasant and easy to grow. Using them in cooking gives you the opportunity to change the flavors of your dishes in different ways. The freshest of them are great for soups, stews, vegetables, pasta, salads and bread. Different types of herbs produce different flavors in foods. If you are new to using herbs, work at it slowly. If you add just a little at a time, you can adjust over time until you get it just right. As you get used to cooking with herbs, you'll learn...
How to Use Fresh Herbs – Try These Tips
Small as they are, herbs are pleasant and easy to grow. Using them in cooking gives you the opportunity to change the flavors of your dishes in different ways. The freshest of them are great for soups, stews, vegetables, pasta, salads and bread.
Different types of herbs produce different flavors in foods. If you are new to using herbs, work at it slowly. If you add just a little at a time, you can adjust over time until you get it just right. As you get used to cooking with herbs, you'll learn about the best ones that can be associated with specific foods. Storing herbs is not difficult either. Even fresh ones last for several days in the fridge. But once herbs are frozen, remember that they are best used only in cooking and not as a side dish.
For example, basil is combined with tomatoes, oregano with sauces, rosemary with roasts and chives with butter or cream cheese. Although these herbs are not limited to these items, you will most often see them paired this way. If you think that oregano may be ideal for a particular food, use your imagination and try it. You never know your experiment will reveal you a new-fangled recipe that is perfectly flavored with the herb.
You'll also see that even the simplest meal can seem like a gourmet treat, no wonder why foodies are masters at pairing herbs with food. You can even make herbal vinegars for your salad dressing and herbal oils to use in recipes that call for oil. You can create your own bold-tasting marinades and herb-inspired spreads and rubs. You can make herb butter by mixing butter with chopped fresh herbs. You'll have fun using your own herb blends every time you make a recipe that calls for vinegar, oil, or butter. Really funny, isn't it?
Imagine how fresh herbs can enhance any dish and make it look spectacular. Imagine placing individual sprigs of rosemary over your roast, garnishing grilled fish with chopped basil, and sprinkling chopped parsley over your potato salad. I like to chop up a fresh herb and mix the green pieces into my light salad dressing. The effect was great and my salad entrée turned out really sparkling. Using your own creativity you can achieve endless combinations and delicious results.
In my small garden I love growing basil, parsley, oregano, lemon balm, mint and a few others. Mint can overgrow your garden, so it's worth growing it in individual doses to prevent the herb from "creeping" all over your garden. My wife makes an instant natural face mask using basil, lemon, and avocados. She would pulverize a handful of basil by blending it on high, then throw in half an avocado and a teaspoon of lemon juice. I tried the trick and there was nothing better than an all-natural facial mask fresh from my garden!
These are just a few ways you can use fresh herbs from your garden. There are still many fun techniques for using herbs that you can learn for your own culinary style and recipes. But first, start planting your herbs.