Fresh herbs can drive me insane at times because most recipes only ask for a small amount of them in comparison to how they’re packaged at the grocery store. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve purchased a large quantity of anything, such as parsley, to utilize a few teaspoons of it and see the remainder go to waste.
If you use herbs primarily for garnish, it’s practically hard to get through them quickly enough—even if you follow our recommendations on how to preserve fresh herbs and put the stems to good use, as we have suggested. Even if you have your live herb plants, they frequently do best when they are pruned regularly, so you may find yourself with a mountain of trimmings to sort through at the end of the season.
8 Top Best Herb Recipes For Cooking
The Best Tabbouleh Salad
While some tabbouleh recipes include a lot of bulgur, the meal is all about parsley, so there should be enough grain and veggies to balance it out.
We salt and drain the parsley and tomatoes to preserve the tabbouleh from becoming mushy, then soak the bulgur in the tomato juices to ensure no flavor is lost.
The Best Pesto
Even though we have many recipes featuring aromatic basil, preparing your pesto is one of the best investments you can make in terms of your herb crop and your time. Yes, it will take some time because the best pesto is made by hand-grinding using a mortar and pestle, which results in the most decadent taste and most luxuriant texture.
Believe us when we say that the work is well worth it. Of course, you’ll want to use extra-virgin olive oil, but choose one that’s not too flavored to keep the attention on the basil.
Easy, Herb-Packed Falafel
Start by grinding soaked dried chickpeas in a food processor; the resulting rough purée requires no additional binder to hold together, resulting in light and crisp falafel.
The best flavor comes from using various herbs, such as parsley, cilantro, and mint. We recommend keeping the balls small so that the crisp exterior and soft, moist interior have a good balance.
Quinoa Salad With Cucumber, Tomato, and Herbs
This is the recipe for you if you like tabbouleh, but it’s not quite filling enough to be a meal on its own. The flavor profile of this make-ahead salad is based on tabbouleh, but it’s bulked up with robust, nutty quinoa.
It’s vital to salt and dries the vegetables to remove extra moisture, just like you would with tabbouleh (and don’t forget to drain the quinoa properly, too).
Easy, Summery Zucchini-Basil Soup
This recipe effectively uses two summer garden staples: zucchini and basil, which chefs frequently have an abundance of. Fortunately, the many plants get along swimmingly in this 20-minute soup.
It’s seasoned with leeks, whose mild flavor pairs nicely with the mildness of zucchini, and cooked just long enough for the squash to break down before being pureed smooth and bright green with an immersion blender. Basil is added in two stages, resulting in fresh, herbal flavor layers.
Corn, Tomato, Feta, and Herb Salad
As delicious as this recipe is, you’ll want to wait until corn and tomatoes are in season, which is around August. Why? It’s a simple salad with only a few ingredients, most of which are summer staples; therefore, the quality of those ingredients is crucial.
We grill the corn until it’s sweet and smokey, then combine it with ripe tomatoes, salty feta, and whatever green herbs we have on hand (parsley, basil, and mint are all lovely choices). The salad doesn’t need much of a dressing as long as the vegetables are good—we add olive oil and lemon juice.
Vegan Tofu and Herb Salad
This salad can be made with whatever light, springy, or summery veggies you choose—lettuce leaves, radishes, cucumber—as well as any soft herbs you have on hand, such as mint basil or cilantro (or a mix).
The dressing’s robust flavors: ginger, garlic, soy sauce, lime juice, Thai chile, and black slat, or Himalayan black salt, provide heft and a pleasantly chewy texture, as well as the dressing’s robust flavors: ginger, garlic, soy sauce, lime juice, Thai chile, and black slat, or Himalayan black salt.
Mixed-Green Salad
If you don’t think a mixed-green salad can be interesting, you haven’t tried a perfect one. This recipe—more of a collection of guidelines—follows the Roman practice of making simple salads, which concentrates upon choosing the most outstanding quality and widest variety of tasty leaves available.
This is a great time to go to your local farmers’ market and stock up on all of the unique salad greens that pop out in the spring and summer. While you’re at it, toss in some basil, mint, chervil, fennel fronds, tarragon, and any other fresh herbs you have on hand; they’ll add flavor and complexity to the dish.
How Do You Cook With Herbs?
Try these ideas if you only want to add a herbal flavor to a portion of simple food like omelets or a salad. If you don’t have all of the herbs listed in the recipes, don’t worry—try a little experimentation! Once you’ve mastered cooking with herbs, you’ll be able to tell which herbs go well together (and which you should save for later!).
Add delicate herbs like cilantro, parsley, and chives 1 to 2 minutes before the end of the cooking time, or sprinkle on top when the meal is ready.
Hardy herbs like marjoram, thyme, and rosemary can be added to the cooking process without losing flavor or becoming chewy.
Which Herbs Do Not Mix Well?
Carrots and anise (Pimpinella anisum, USDA zones 4-9) should not be grown together, and rue and basil are poor Brassica partners. Rosemary should be kept apart from other herbs and potatoes, carrots, and Cucurbita genus members.
Herbs can be planted in a variety of combinations. Herbs that grow well in the same environment can usually be planted together. Sage, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, lavender, and oregano are some of the herbs that are usually cultivated together.
Conclusion
There is, however, a solution: look for recipes in which herbs are the primary component rather than a garnish to use instead. Half a cup or more of basil, cilantro, mint, or any other fresh herb can be used to infuse a vibrant taste into various recipes. From dill-infused chickpea salad to airy falafel stuffed with cilantro and parsley to the most delicious mint ice cream, here are the recipes to ensure that you never waste fresh herbs ever again.
Enjoy dishes that include delicious rosemary, basil, dill, mint, oregano, and thyme when herbs are in season. Cooking with herbs not only produces delicious fresh flavors, but it’s also good for you! Here are 15 delectable herb recipes, ranging from savory rosemary recipes to fantastic herb butter to divine basil pesto to a mint dish to keep your breath fresh on date night.
