Cooking Nice

There are so many wonderful culinary herbs that it’s difficult to choose just five for our top five list, but here goes:

1. Basil. Rub basil gently and enjoy its heavenly scent on your fingers. If you love pasta this herb should be your top choice. It reminds us of long, relaxing summer days and it is especially enjoyed with fresh garlic, crushed black pepper, big cuts of mozarella, thick slices of juicy beef tomatoes all drizzled with an oil and vinegar dressing. Basil is also the main ingredient in pesto. Basil not only complements Italian food but also American and Thai cuisines.

2. Lavender. Our favorite herb blend is Herbes De Provence and lavender is part of this delightful mix, along with savory, thyme, basil and others. It’s great on grilled food, especially fish, and in vegetable soups and meaty stews too. Lavender is not only edible but it smells great. Lavender helps relax the body, so a lavender bouquet by your pillow will help you have a restful night’s sleep!

3. Dill. Great with pickles! And it’s perfect with salmon. It’s fine ‘branches’ dress up salmon wonderfully.

4. Rosemary. Think big when you think of Rosemary – it can really grow! This shrub that can be grown into mini culinary Christmas trees – a great gift for anyone who loves to cook. It smells heavenly too and it’s a perfect accompaniment for tomatoes and grilled vegetables, soup and meat.

5. Cilantro rounds out our top five. It has a totally different aroma to the other herbs and definitely livens up a dish. It’s the perfect herb for pico de galloand basically any Mexican dishes!

So many herbs are available that it’s hard to pick just five top herbs. Growing herbs can be a fun pastime, so if you’ve ever fancied the idea of a herb garden then why not pick up these five herbs in the spring and get planting! You will then have a choice of herbs that will delight your palate that are within easy reach, for whatever type of dish you are making.