| In any number of cookbooks and recipes you | | | | |
| will find advice on which herbsgo with what. | | | | Of course you can, if you wish, go to the |
| I'm not going to take that route. | | | | trouble of buying apestle and mortar, |
| | | | tracking down the raw spices and then |
| While there certainly are marriages that are | | | | grindthem yourself. |
| tried and tested,such as tomatoes and basil | | | | |
| or lamb and rosemary, the reality isthat the | | | | If you do this, you will be richly rewarded |
| use of herbs is every bit as much a matter of | | | | with deep andpenetrating flavors. You may |
| personaltaste as any other aspect of cooking. | | | | also find that you get tired of doing itvery |
| | | | quickly. However I would highly recommend it |
| Consequently, what I want you to do is to | | | | for a specialoccasion, or a wet weekend in |
| sample as many herbs asyou can and try to | | | | Bargo! |
| marry up the flavors with the foods you | | | | |
| arefamiliar with. That's not as difficult as | | | | Generally speaking, though, the shop bought |
| it sounds. Just closeyour eyes and think | | | | variety are fine,providing you don't keep |
| about it. | | | | them hanging around in a cupboard for |
| | | | toolong. They will lose their flavor. |
| You will find, after a while, that you will | | | | |
| instinctively knowwhich flavoring to use, | | | | As with herbs, it's very important that you |
| when to use it and how much of it youneed. | | | | learn the taste andsmell of each individual |
| | | | spice and, uniquely, its pungency. Thislast |
| Do this with both fresh and dried herbs. | | | | item is one that is frequently overlooked, |
| Crush a little betweenfinger and thumb and | | | | even byexperienced cooks. |
| smell it. This is much more important | | | | |
| thanyour sense of taste. | | | | Just about everybody is aware that chili |
| | | | needs to be usedcarefully for obvious |
| Something magical will happen. You will come | | | | reasons. But for some reason they do not |
| to realize thatfresh herbs are not better | | | | paythe same attention to turmeric - which is |
| than dried ones, they simply impart | | | | quite delicate - and,say, star anise which |
| adifferent flavor. There are two major | | | | can strangle an incautious palate at ahundred |
| exceptions to this. | | | | paces. |
| | | | |
| One is mint, which has a strange musty flavor | | | | Both give themselves away, however, if you |
| when dried, andthe other is chives, which are | | | | simply take the lidoff the jar and sniff |
| so delicate that the flavor rarelysurvives | | | | them. |
| cooking. Using dried chives is therefore | | | | |
| prettypointless. | | | | Mixing spice |
| | | | |
| One other point to watch out for is that some | | | | Generally speaking, it is a rare thing to add |
| dried herbs canremained inedible even after | | | | more than a coupleof spices to the same dish. |
| thorough cooking. Rosemary is a verygood | | | | The obvious exceptions to this are |
| example of this and needs to be filtered out | | | | |
| of any liquidsin which it has been used as a | | | | Asian and Indian dishes, where the carefully |
| flavoring. | | | | blended mix offlavors will be both |
| | | | traditional and subtle. |
| In any case, fresh or dried, it is better to | | | | |
| chop up herbs suchas this before using them. | | | | You have a choice with these. You either |
| | | | follow a recipe, oryou use one of the many |
| Using herbs in cooking | | | | excellent pre-prepared pastes that are |
| | | | nowavailable. I tend towards the latter |
| Many herbs, such as basil and coriander | | | | choice, although I dostill mix my own spices |
| (sometimes called | | | | from time to time. |
| | | | |
| Chinese parsley and cilantro in the USA) are | | | | You should do the same. It's fun and you |
| terrific simply torn upin salads. Note that | | | | learn a great dealabout which spices mix well |
| I said torn up and not cut; only cut herbsif | | | | and which are best kept as anindividual |
| you intend to cook them. | | | | flavoring. |
| | | | |
| It's important to recognize that some herbs | | | | However you choose to cook with spice, treat |
| lose flavor withextended cooking, even in | | | | it with respect andalways add it a little at |
| their dried state. Fortunately it'sfairly | | | | a time, tasting as you go. |
| easy to spot which those are. | | | | |
| | | | Remember also, that the flavor will change |
| Tough leaved herbs such as bay can be safely | | | | with the length ofcooking time. It may |
| added at the startof cooking time and will | | | | deepen, or it may lessen in its effect. |
| maintain their flavor. In fact, theymay need | | | | |
| to be in the food for as long as possible in | | | | Only experience will teach you what each |
| order fortheir flavor to fully develop. | | | | individual spice does andhow quickly it does |
| | | | it. |
| Herbs with light and delicate leaves, | | | | |
| however, will lose theirflavor very quickly | | | | One excellent way to test the effect of |
| once in contact with heat. To use basil in | | | | adding spice, is to cookyour rice with |
| asoup, for example, you needed to add it, not | | | | something like cardamom seeds. These come |
| to the hot liquidas you might expect, but | | | | inlittle pods that needed to be cracked open |
| rather to the warm plate you intend toserve | | | | and the seeds extracted. |
| the soup in. Then pour the soup on top of it. | | | | |
| | | | Do this by placing them on a stable surface, |
| Alternatively, simply sprinkle it on top of | | | | place the flat of acleaver blade over them |
| the soup and leaveit there. It will make an | | | | and apply a bit of pressure. They willopen |
| attractive decoration and impart awonderful | | | | easily. Use about two pods for one dish of |
| aroma as you take the soup to the table. | | | | rice. |
| | | | |
| What's that? You want to use a tureen and | | | | You could also add some turmeric to the same |
| server the soup atthe table? No problem. | | | | rice dish. Thiswill turn it yellow and also |
| Sprinkle the herb in its raw state on topof | | | | add a subtle flavor which complementsthe |
| the soup anyway. The effect, when you remove | | | | pungency of the cardamom. Call it saffron |
| the lid, willbe the same. Just stir it in as | | | | rice if you like,very few people will be able |
| you serve. | | | | to tell the difference. |
| | | | |
| The spices of life | | | | Rice is a good way to test any number of |
| | | | flavorings. Personally |
| Most people, including most professional | | | | |
| chefs, use spices thathave already been | | | | I find it a bit boring on its own, and I |
| prepared. | | | | frequently addsomething to it to jazz it up a |
| | | | little. Experiment. You will bepleasantly |
| That is to say they have been ground up, | | | | surprised at what a difference a new flavor |
| ready to use. The mainexception to this is | | | | can make. |
| probably black pepper, which you shouldalways | | | | |
| grind yourself. Not difficult. You can buy | | | | You will also be pleasantly surprised at your |
| a peppergrinder just about anywhere and the | | | | growingreputation. |
| peppercorns are available in anysupermarket. | | | | |