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What's Your Favorite Fresh Herb?

2009_10_21-FreshHerb.jpgI love fresh herbs, and it is really hard to choose one favorite, but I would have to say that my favorite fresh herb is sage. I love the soft, fuzzy texture. The earthy smell. The silvery-green color. And the taste. It's just not stuffing without sage. Roast potatoes are so wonderful with it. You can fry it. It can be made into pesto.

 
 

My second runner-up is fresh tarragon, that piquant hard-to-find herb with a slight anise taste. It gives my salads and marinades a special something. It can be infused in cocktails and pairs well with strawberry in jam.

What is your favorite fresh herb?

P.S. Before you ask, the red poppy creamer was found in a small antique store in the French Alps ...

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Quick Tip: Save Leftover Herbs in Ice Cubes
Recipe: Herb Butter

(Image: Kathryn Hill)

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Ingredients - Herbs, herbs, herb, fresh herbs

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Comments (34)

For me, Sage runs a close second to rosemary, both of which I have growing on my windowsill.

posted by empresscallipygos on October 21st 2009 at 1:36pm
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Cilantro

posted by Kate (NC) on October 21st 2009 at 1:37pm
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I love flat leaf parsley for it's fresh flavor that can put a garden flavor into any dish. Goes with nearly any type of food, but most often I slow-cook garlic in olive oil and throw on some pasta, then it's just lemon, asiago, pepper, salt, and parsley.

posted by mangabanga on October 21st 2009 at 2:15pm
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i don't usually cook much with thyme (we're a big cilantro and basil family), but i bought some recently for a recipe (garlic soup from 101cookbooks) and have been loving finding ways to use it...in a lemony mushroom risotto, sprinkled over roasted sweet potatoes, in scrambled eggs...definitely a current favorite!

posted by rachpie on October 21st 2009 at 2:25pm
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Basil.

Although, mint is a close second. It makes my spare bedroom smell wonderful.

posted by sherrme on October 21st 2009 at 2:38pm
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Cilantro

posted by GracieE on October 21st 2009 at 2:43pm
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Basil, followed closely by rosemary.

posted by kestrel127 on October 21st 2009 at 2:48pm
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flat leaf parsley, hands down. it adds brightness to everything!

posted by shannona on October 21st 2009 at 2:57pm
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Living in an apartment and being dirt poor I don't get much in the way of fresh herbs, but when I do I usually go for cilantro. It has such a strong flavor that a little bit can go a long way. I use it with some lime juice in rice, or I mix it in with salsa or guacamole.

posted by TipsyMongoose on October 21st 2009 at 3:13pm
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Since I'm named after it, Rosemary has to be my hands down favorite with sage and basil tying for second.

posted by rosebud on October 21st 2009 at 3:22pm
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parsley. parsley. parsley.

I will say though, I now know how someone can vehemently hate an herb. I once had a kitchen failure with a particularly bad soup using a Bittman recipe that featured sage. I can't smell sage now without wanting to wretch.

posted by Amandica on October 21st 2009 at 3:26pm
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THYME, hands down.

I use it in everything and it's so easy to grow.

posted by keltrue on October 21st 2009 at 3:47pm
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My favorite is rosemary, but then sage! Fried sage is my secret weapon.

posted by cptmoll on October 21st 2009 at 4:00pm
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Although I just clicked on your fried sage link, and it's quite different than how I have done it before. I use the technique in this salmon recipe:
http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/19/nyregion/food-the-subtle-flavor-of-fried-sage.html
and it is awesome.

posted by cptmoll on October 21st 2009 at 4:02pm
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and here I thought I'd be the odd one out with this "boring" response.... PARSLEY!

I love love love flat leaf parsley. I love it more in large quantities. I add an entire bunch of it into my spinach soup and spinach dip... I also prefer parsley pesto to traditional basil pesto.....

It's such a lovely herb.

posted by modern on long island on October 21st 2009 at 4:04pm
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Thai basil!

posted by gleam on October 21st 2009 at 4:13pm
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DILL.

0.000000000001 seconds behind it would be Cilantro!

posted by Tara blogs about everything on October 21st 2009 at 4:52pm
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Basil for me!

posted by danze on October 21st 2009 at 5:20pm
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Nothing makes me happier than fresh basil. Its magic :)

posted by HollyLively on October 21st 2009 at 5:36pm
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Coriander, basil, tarragon.

posted by buda on October 21st 2009 at 5:40pm
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ITALIAN PARSLEY!!

posted by aub on October 21st 2009 at 6:22pm
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Top choice: Basil. Second: other types of basil :-) Third: Cilantro.

I've got an overgrowth of sage and rosemary. I like them but don't eat them in quantity. And they've grown like crazy this year!

posted by kelleyk on October 21st 2009 at 6:43pm
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Oh, basil. I could marry basil. Dill, sage, rosemary, thyme, and just about every other fresh herb have special places in my heart. But when I smell fresh basil, it's just bliss.

posted by matchbookhymnal on October 21st 2009 at 7:10pm
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I'm in the basil camp. I usually plant a minimum of 4 sweet/Genovese plants every year, and then try a new variety. Previous varieties have been Thai basil, one with a red leaf that I don't know the name of and lemon basil. Maybe going to try cinnamon basil next year. I love most fresh herbs but basil is the king.

posted by gardensimple on October 21st 2009 at 7:32pm
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Another vote for basil (and cilantro as the runner-up).

Onepot
http://onepot.wordpress.com

posted by Onepot on October 21st 2009 at 8:58pm
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Rosemary, 2nd runner up--Thyme.

posted by Charlotte on October 21st 2009 at 9:07pm
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can't name a favorite- like them for different reasons.
Basil- is summer
Cilantro- brightens everything up
rosemary- reminds me of Christmas (don't know why)
Mint- can't have a mojito without one
Dill- turns everything into something special
Lemongrass- fresh, lemony, grassy taste
tarragon- yummy in salads

Will definitely add parsely to the garden next year, seems to be a favorite that I have not cooked with enough.

posted by bfisk on October 21st 2009 at 9:11pm
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While these other herbs are lovely, my absolute favorite is marjoram. I sometimes forget it, but our reunions are glorious!

posted by zephyrluna on October 21st 2009 at 11:29pm
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Basil, without question. Parsley and Oregano tie for second place, however.

posted by bocadelperro on October 21st 2009 at 11:51pm
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Cilantro (or coriander as I knew it for most of my life) is my absolute favourite! Cannot live without it. There is always, always some of this herb at home.

Rosemary and thyme tie for a comfortable second. Since I use them often but not in as much quantity as cilantro, I can have small pots of them growing on my window-sill.

My stealth herb-love is mint! A whiff of it makes me just deliriously happy everytime! If I smell it at the store, I buy lots of it on the spot. Then I have the dilemma of dealing with ten bunches of mint. But the apartment smells heavenly! :)

Sage pesto? Really? I like sage, but a pesto does seem a bit too much of a good thing...

posted by Chilli on October 22nd 2009 at 12:51am
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I love tarragon as well (heck, I love sage too), but my favorite favorite favorite fresh herb is hands-down, cilantro. I love it.

posted by misplacedtexan on October 22nd 2009 at 11:19am
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Thyme, no question.

It's subtle and refreshing. Also, it goes with darn near everything. I love making thyme-infused simple syrup to mix into cocktails, especially gin. *swoon*

ABreadADay.com

posted by eprewitt on October 22nd 2009 at 2:55pm
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thanks for the sage ideas -- I have a plant that's going great guns, and haven't been able to use it up fast enough. I'm intrigued to try frying sage in tempura batter; I usually just fry it in butter.

posted by melting on October 22nd 2009 at 7:59pm
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I'll have to add thyme to my favourites, too. Thyme on roasted carrots—yum!

Now if only I could stop killing the plants in the winter.

posted by sherrme on January 28th 2010 at 12:46pm
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