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 A
great way to instantly add flavor and excitement to your food
is to use fresh herbs. Herbs will add an aromatic quality
to any dish that dried herbs can only mimic. Several years
ago I cooked a dinner for my in-laws. During the preparation
of the meal they sat down and  observed
as I chopped garlic, vegetables, and a variety of fresh herbs.
Funny enough (to me at least), as soon as the herbs emerged,
they commented on how gourmet I was. The truth is, that yes,
using herbs does add significant flavor and I certainly can’t
imagine gourmet foods without the use of herbs. But strangely
enough, when they said the word ‘gourmet’ I wondered
if they were implying that the use of herbs was rather extravagant
and perhaps too much trouble for everyday foods. My curiosity
regarding this perception has been reinforced at regional
and national gluten intolerance conferences. During numerous
cooking demonstrations, I consistently hear feedback that
the foods prepared within the class have so much flavor. A
lot, and I mean, a lot of this "flavor" needs to
be credited to the use of fresh herbs. Remember, having Celiac
disease does not mean that your food has to lack flavor!
Using herbs as a regular addition to your
foods truly does not take that much effort. Simply snip off
what you need and chop. The fun part of using herbs is getting
to the point where you understand the characteristics of each
herb and how to use it to compliment your food. If you have
little experience cooking with herbs here are some great tips
to get you started:
- Begin by tasting a leaf of the herb you
are investigating. Treat it kind of like fine wine and fully
grasp its taste and fragrant bouquet.
- Add fresh herbs (a little at a time)
to something rather bland like butter or sour cream. Use
the mixture as a compliment to potatoes or even grilled
meats. Doing this allows the intensity of the herb to stand
out and gives you a pretty good idea of how much of the
herb you should add to various foods.
- Experimentation is the key: add some
rosemary to chicken; add fresh basil leaves to salad; add
fresh basil or oregano to your favorite gf pizza.
There are many, many herbs to experiment
with and I encourage you to try all of them out. You can really
get into it and have some fun with the amazing flavors offered
by these great edible plants. If you are just starting out
here are some of the most commonly used herbs and a general
idea of what works best with what:
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Herbs
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Common Uses
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Chives
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Soups, salads, salad dressings, eggs,
dips, vegetables, chicken, butters, and fish.
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Thyme
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Game, beef, fish, cream cheese, fish,
chowders, pâté, vegetables, and tomato
sauce.
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Tarragon
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Chicken, fish, eggs, tomato juice,
butters (especially nice on steak), cream sauces, vinegars,
salads, mustards, sauces (hollandaise, béarnaise
and tartar), Soups (chicken, fish, mushroom and tomato)
and marinades for fish, lamb or pork.
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Oregano
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Sauces (white and tomato), stews,
soups, fish, lamb, pork, vegetables, butters, and vinegars.
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Rosemary
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Beef, lamb, fish, poultry, stuffings,
soups, stews, fruit cups, soups, vegetables, and marinades.
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Sage
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Stuffings (for fish, poultry, and
meat), pâté, eggs, poultry, pork, beef,
lamb, pasta, cheeses (cheddar, cream, and cottage),
sauces (brown and meat), soups (cream and chowder),
beef stews, and vegetables.
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Basil
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Pesto, salsas, salads, tomato sauce,
chicken, fish, vegetables, eggs, flavored Mayonnaise,
flavored soft cheese, flavored butters, soups,
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If you’d like to grow your own herbs,
check out our article archives for previous articles on growing
your own herb garden.
- Glutenfreeda
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