This week’s Cooking Demonstration group learned how to use herbs and spices more effectively to give their food depth of flavour and excitement.
Exotic Herbs and Spices
Herbs and spices are ingredients that make dishes taste absolutely wonderful. A simple grilled chicken dish becomes something that tastes out of this world. Pasta dishes take on new dimensions. A salad suddenly becomes a taste sensation, leaving you wanting more instead of you wanting to leave it on the side of your plate. Many world cuisines use herbs and spices in everyday cooking. Aim to have herbs and spices as commonplace items in your kitchen, rather than exotic and unfamiliar, and you will never look back.
Perhaps the very best thing about learning to use herbs and spices in your everyday cooking is this: not only do herbs and spices add depth of flavour, they take next to no time to prepare and best of all, they have no calories to speak of! How much healthier can an ingredient get? Perhaps no other ingredients in the culinary world can impart so much flavour for so little cost in terms of calorie intake. Learning to use herbs and spices to lift your dishes to new heights of deliciousness simply means you’ll stick to eating healthier food for good. Surely there can be no better incentive to eating healthy food, in the long term.
Herbs
Herbs are simply green leaves that are highly fragrant and flavoursome. Quite possibly the only exception to this is lemongrass, which are fragrant stalks. There are just a few things to keep in mind when you begin to add herbs to your everyday cooking. Herbs are available to us fresh, in paste form (tubes or jars) or dried. Some herbs really should not be used dried. It’s best to use fresh basil, parsley, mint and coriander. They tend to lose a lot of their fragrance once they have been dried. In fact, all herbs are best in their fresh form. Having said that, however, some herbs do dry well, and in fact become stronger in flavour once dried. Herbs such as oregano, thyme, rosemary and marjoram dry very well. Herbs that have been ground into pastes that are available in jars or tubes do retain some flavour, but these really cannot be compared to fresh herbs.
Freshness is the key to getting the best out of your herbs. Choose herbs that are not limp or discoloured. Lemongrass should not look dry. To maintain freshness, put them into a glass of water. Place a plastic bag over both the herbs and the glass, and secure with a clothes peg. Keep this in the fridge and your herbs will stay fresh for at least a week. The best way to always have fresh herbs to hand, however, is to quickly use up what you have and replenish regularly. If however, you do not use them up, you can simply freeze them in bags or in ice cube trays. Once you do this, you can only use the herbs in cooked dishes and marinades rather than in salads.
When it comes to dried herbs, keep them in an airtight jar and keep them in the pantry, where it is dark and cool. Although dried herbs can be kept indefinitely, their fragrance and flavour will deteriorate. For that reason it is best to buy dried herbs in small quantities, and use them within 3-4 months of purchase. Even if you don’t use them up, it’s best to simply discard it and buy a fresh packet or jar.
If you are adding fresh herbs to a cooked dish, add the herbs in at the very end of the cooking process. Fresh herbs just need to wilt to release their fragrance and flavour, and will lose their fragrance if cooked for more than a few minutes.
Preparing lemongrass is a little different. Stalks are much tougher and woodier than the usual leafy herbs. You can use a whole length of lemongrass when preparing curries – simply add the stalk when you begin cooking, and the flavour will infuse through the cooking process. Remove the stalk prior to serving and discard. Don’t attempt to eat it, it will still be pretty tough! If you want to use lemongrass in stir fries, use only the pale, slightly bulbous end (probably about 5 inches in all). The rest is far too woody to eat. You will need to slice the lemongrass very, very finely. Expect cooked lemongrass slices to be still somewhat chewy once cooked. But it will be a pleasant chewiness because of the lovely lemony flavour explosion when you bite into each piece. Some curry recipes call for lemongrass to be processed as part of the curry paste. Chop the stalk as finely as possible before adding to your food processor.
Spices
Spices are highly aromatic seeds (coriander, fennel, cumin etc), roots (ginger, turmeric) and pods (chilli, vanilla) that are dried. Cinnamon is another unique spice in that it is the bark of a tree.
These dried spices are available to us in either whole pieces, or ground. Ground spices are much more convenient to use. Whole spices tend to be used when an infusion is required. For example, in Vietnamese cooking, whole spices are added to soup stocks. The whole spices (such as star anise and cinnamon quills) impart their flavour in the stock over a long period of simmering. The spices are then discarded rather than eaten. Ground spices are generally used in dishes such as curry, and the spices are eaten as part of the dish.
If you are keen enough, you can grind your own spices. This is quite an experience and the difference in flavour is quite something. Grinding your own spices involves a two step process. To grind whole spices, you need to roast it first. To do this, you simply toss the whole spice (such as coriander or cumin seed) in a fry pan on its own, without oil. Once the fragrance is released (you’ll be able to smell it), take the spice off the heat and allow to cool. Then it is ready to grind. You can use a mortar and pestle, and while this is labour intensive, you will be rewarded for your effort by the incredible fragrance of the spice as you work. The easy way is to use a coffee grinder. It is much quicker and will grind the spices a little finer than a mortar and pestle would.
The easiest thing to do, however, is to simply purchase spices that are a ready ground. Simply use within 3 months of opening and replenish after that. If you have had spices sitting in your kitchen for years, go and get a fresh new batch. When you open the new packet or jar, you will be amazed at how much stronger the fragrance is, compared to the old, stale stuff.
Chillis and ginger are spices that are easily available fresh. Buy ginger pieces that do not look dried or shrivelled. Fresh chillies can be quite hot. Chilli seeds are the hottest part, so if you want to tone down the heat, discard the seeds. Be careful to wash your hands after handling chillis. The rule of thumb for chillis is that the larger the chilli, the milder it is. Small ones (about the length of a fingernail) are absolutely fiery. Other very hot varieties include scotch bonnets and habaneros. These look like miniature, squashed capsicums and are very fiery.
Although generally regarded as beneficial and health giving, raw garlic should never be stored in oil. The sulphurous nature of garlic makes it prone to be a breeding ground for botulism. Botulism is a toxin that can result in major stomach illness and even death
Herbs and spices are a matter of taste. Use and experiment to see which ones you like. Add more if you want, or less, it’s up to you!
Here are some ways to use herbs and spices in everyday dishes:
- Tomato based pasta sauce – this is great with fresh basil, or dried oregano or thyme
- Creamy pasta sauces – add a small pinch of nutmeg, finish with finely chopped fresh parsley
- Green curry – add fresh basil and/or fresh coriander leaves just before serving
- Asian style stir fries – these will benefit from coriander leaves or some kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded
- Grilled chicken or beef – sprinkle some dried spices and create your own‘rub’. Paprika is great for chicken, thyme or rosemary for beef or lamb
We’d love to have you join us every Friday morning. Meet new friends, learn to cook new dishes, enjoy coffee and a pastry and all for only $15!
