Herbs taste great and boost health

Let’s talk “herbs”. This is the time of year when they are at their most aromatic and their most flavoursome.

If you have walked in a wood recently and di-scovered it carpeted with swathes of wild garlic you will not need to be told of the aromatic qualities of this versatile little herb. I realise that it’s a member of the allium family often named Ransom, but the Herb Society assures me it is definitely a herb. A herb, it seems, is defined as any plant or plant part valued for its medicinal, savoury or aromatic quality. Some are used to both flavour our food and act as a medicine. Wild garlic meets this criteria absolutely: not only does it taste sublime when added to savoury dishes, it’s considered even more effective than garlic when it comes to lowering blood pressure, which in turn helps control heart disease and the risk of a stroke. It’s sensible therefore to make much of this glorious little plant while it’s in season.

Herbs such as the Ransom are nature’s gift to the cook. Think of them as living stock cubes that can help build up flavour in soups, stews, casseroles, stir fries and even roasts such as leg of lamb which tastes glorious when spiked with rosemary while cooking.

Some dishes, such as the traditional French dish beef bourguignon — which is often described as one of the most delicious dishes devised by man — call for several herbs which are tied together to create a bouquet garni which will infuse flavour into the pot. There’s no absolute recipe for this herbal bouquet, it can be made with parsley, thyme and a bay leaf, but there is nothing to stop you adding further herbs such as: chervil, burnet, rosemary, savoury, tarragon and perhaps a stick of carrot and one of celery. Each will enhance a dish by adding a little of their flavour.

Bouquet garnis are bound together with kitchen twine, leaving a long end of twine to enable it to be tied to the pot handle for easy removal when the dish is done. Rosemary is a Mediterranean herb which can be rather overpowering in some dishes if too much has been added. This is an evergreen shrub with sharp needle-like leaves that have a grey underside and produces attractive little blue flowers in early spring. Because it’s available throughout the year it’s certainly worth planting one if you have room in the garden. When used to flavour bread it is particularly effective as it is when drunk as a tea, though pregnant women are advised not to consume too much. Try throwing a bunch or two on the barbecue when it’s at high heat to enable items on the grill to absorb its flavour. Rosemary flowers add something special to a salad.

Ancient folklore lists rosemary as a memory enhancer and it is particularly beneficial for those suffering tiredness and fatigue. Basil, considered the king of herbs, is a must in any kitchen, particularly at this time of the year when salads are the order of the day. Try growing basil yourself and if that is not possible, buy as a potted living herb, enabling you to remove it stalk by stalk as it continues to grow. Basil is best added to a dish towards the end of its cooking period and torn rather than chopped. Although this highly prized herb is linked with the Italian cuisine, it has been cultivated in India for 5,000 years and is considered sacred by Hindus.

Basil is thought to ease stomach cramps and headaches and is a great source of calcium, iron, foliate magnesium and omega 3 fatty acids, but its ability to enhance the flavours in a salad, heighten the flavours of tomato- based dishes or bring out the very essence of mozzarella must surely top its list of assets, confirming it as the king of herbs.

Herbs are the most wondrous plants with aromatic qualities that are at their best at this time of the year. Walk through a herb garden now, particularly shortly after a shower; it really is a magical experience. I speak after walking through swathes of wild garlic in a Cotswold woodland last week. The flowers provided a white carpet of blossom and a gentle, yet positive aroma filled the air with a quite remarkable fragrance. Out of concern that I might have got it wrong by classifying wild garlic as a herb when it should be listed as an allium, I contacted the Herb Society whose national herb garden can be found at Sulgrave Manor, near Banbury, where I was assured it was a herb. It ticks all the boxes they assured me, as it offers positive health benefits and tastes good. Served with seasonal ingredients such as asparagus or Jersey Royals makes for a glorious treat. Chop the leaves, blanch them and mix with other salad greens.