by Priscilla Grantham

Created on: May 03, 2007   Last Updated: May 04, 2007

Rather than focus on the cultivation and even the medicinal purposes of common garden herbs. We will examine the many uses of herbs in everyday cooking. One should try to use fresh herbs when possible. Remember when planning and preparing your dishes, 1 teaspoon of dried herbs is equivalent to 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs.

Basil
Basil is generally associated with the Italian cooking however; basil is indispensable for Mediterranean dishes as well. There are far more uses for basil than the traditional spaghetti sauce. Basil is used in minestrone soup and tomato soup. Also considered as a fish herb. Basil is used on the baked or grilled fish soups seafood boils. Rabbit lends itself well to the sweet clove like spiciness of basil. Other popular uses for this herb are used in deviled eggs, scrambled eggs, cheese fondue and special butter spreads.

Bay
Bay leaf is the only herb is better dried than fresh. Generally a bay leaf is added when you began cooking then removed before serving. A bay leaf is usually placed in potato soup. People in Louisiana use bay leaf in all seafood and crawfish boils. Popular in most fish dishes. It is said bay leaf helps remove some of the wild flavor from venison, other meat made more flavorful using bay leaf are beef, rabbit and duck.

Chives
To stimulate an appetite or aid digestion by, sprinkling raw, chopped chives on top of soups, salads, chicken, potatoes. Try adding chives two cooked vegetable and egg dishes. Seafood dishes and fish are complemented using chives. Chives mingle well in many casseroles and marinades. Serving cheeses and butters containing fresh chopped chives brings a touch of elegance to any meal. Some vegetables such as cauliflower and asparagus can be enhanced by the mild onion flavor of chives.

Coriander
There are two parts of the coriander plant used for culinary purposes the ripe seeds and the leaves have two distinct flavors the seeds are used and tomato chutney and curry's. The seeds can be crushed or bruised, then added to wonderful vegetables and soups. The leaves are delicious tossed into salads. This herb, can be applied directly to meat or prepared into a flavorful marinate. This herb was once quite popular in casseroles.

Dill
Like basil, dill is a main ingredient for minestrone and tomato soup. Dill greatly enhances the flavor of fish and seafood dishes. Often paired with the herb, fennel when served on oily fish. DL is also used to flavor eggs cheeses and butters some vegetables also benefit from its poignant

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