by Rosemary Redfern

Created on: February 22, 2010

Herbs and spices are the parts of plants which are aromatic.  They can be leaves, stems, buds or roots but they all have a flavor enhancing role in cooking and preparing food because they lift any dish out of the ordinary. The amount used will vary with personal taste but as dried herbs and spices begin to lose their aroma quickly it is worth being generous with them.  The essential idea is that they are natural and not artificial. 

For savory dishes bay leaves are essential to impart a subtle aroma.  They can be used with almost any meat recipe and many vegetable combinations such as ratatouille. A shrub in the garden is a useful source but dried leaves work equally well. They are also decorative on terrines and Christmas table centers or wreaths. 

Herbs de Provence are a basic combination of herbs for meat dishes which enhance strong meats like beef; giving a strength and depth to a stew.

Thyme is a pretty plant but is often easier to use in a dried form because then its use is not dependent on the time of year. 

Rosemary can be chopped and added to meat, the stems make excellent skewers for barbecues and the tender tips work very well when stuck into slits in legs or shoulders of lamb, with a sliver of garlic, which is then roasted. 

Sage goes wonderfully with pork, especially in home made sausages. 

Fennel adds an aniseed flavor to savory foods and helps to dispel the gases of digestion. With indigestion is can be chewed to relieve the discomfort. 

Fresh mint leaves look attractive topping out a cold desert or made into a mint sauce when chopped finely with a little sugar and added vinegar but dried mint can be added to any lamb dish 

For home made curries, coriander, ginger, ground or fresh, and cumin are basics to which other spices can be added to give variety.  

Ginger is good in sweet, steamed puddings, especially with raisins and golden syrup. It is also an ingredient of Moroccan food.

Moroccan food uses cinnamon lavishly yet is does not overpower it.  Whole cinnamon bark added to figs simmered gently with honey and white wine is delicious. 

Cardamon can work in curries and sweet dishes, as whole pods or crushed seeds.  

Potatoes with grated nutmeg have an extra something but nutmeg is useful to add to the surface of sweet puddings like rice.

Cloves are an old additive in apple pies and can be useful in alleviating tooth ache. 

Saffron adds both subtle color and flavor to savory dishes. 

Fresh basil is nicer than dried and has a subtly different taste. Easy to grow on a windowsill it can be readily available. 

Added to vinegars and oils, herbs and spices offer their aromas but care should be taken to use them fairly quickly because they can harbor bacteria if left too long. 

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