The Cook's Herb Garden

194 Pages·2010·11.233 MB·English

by  Cox, Jeff, Moine, Marie-Pierre

T H E C O O K ’ S
H E R B
G A R D E N
G R O W • H A RV E S T • C O O K
JEFF COX • MARIE-PIERRE MOINE

THE COOK’S
H E R B
GARDEN
Jeff Cox & Marie-Pierre Moine
London, New York, Melbourne, Munich, and Delhi
Editors Helena Caldon,
Constance Novis
Photographers William Reavell,
Peter Anderson, Sarah Ashun
Project Editor Andrew Roff
US Editors Rebecca Warren,
Shannon Beatty
Project Designer Will Hicks
Designer Elly King
Managing Editors Dawn Henderson,
Angela Wilkes
Managing Art Editor Christine Keilty
Senior Jacket Creative Nicola Powling
Senior Production Editor Jennifer Murray
Senior Production Controller Seyhan Esen
Creative Technical Support Sonia Charbonnier
First American Edition, 2010
Published in the United States
by DK Publishing
375 Hudson Street
New York, New York 10014
10 11 12 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
176546—March 2010
Copyright © 2010 Dorling Kindersley Limited
All rights reserved
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above,
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and the above publisher of this book.
Published in Great Britain
by Dorling Kindersley Limited.
A catalog record for this book is available from
the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-0-7566-5869-4
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Discover more at
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DK would like to thank
Petersham Nurseries
for their beautiful planted
pots and baskets.
www.petershamnurseries.com
C O N T E N T S
4 Introductions
CHOOSE
7 Planted Pots and Baskets
20 The Herb Catalog
GROW
76 Climate
80 Planning
84 Soil
86 Growing from Seed
88 Growing Young Plants
90 Propagating
92 Feeding and Watering
94 Weed Control
96 Improving your Harvest
98 Pests
100 Diseases
HARVEST AND STORE
104 Reaping the Harvest
108 Short-term Storage
110 Freezing
114 Drying
COOK
122 Preparation
128 Flavorings
130 The Recipes
178 Herbal Teas
186 Partner Charts

190 Index
192 Acknowledgments
4 INTRODUCTIONS
JEFF COX
A NOTE FROM THE GARDENER
I always think of culinary herbs as the champions of the kitchen
garden. Their volatile oils—so attractive in teas and as flavors
in our cooking—evolved as compounds plants use to defend
themselves from insects and fungi. Both cooks and gardeners
therefore benefit from an herb’s aromas, because you don’t need
to use environmentally disruptive chemicals to protect them.
As I work and live with herbs, I befriend them. The familiar
perennials return year after year to greet me with each warming
spring; while the new annual acquaintances, which need sowing
every year, unfurl from their tiny seeds into replicas of herbs from
last year. Every year and throughout the seasons, the herb garden
returns this friendship with a feast for all the senses.
In my garden, in the mild climate of Sonoma County, California, I
grow all the Mediterranean herbs plus mints, borage, summer savory,
horseradish, and more. Putting supper together begins with a perusal
of the garden to see which herbs are at their best; the other
ingredients come next.
Almost all of the herbs listed in this book will flower, sprinkling your
herb garden with pretty blossoms. Mix and match, contrast and
compare—you can make dramatic and attractive arrangements in
dedicated herb gardens, dot herbs through beds and borders, or simply
keep a few pots outside the backdoor. This regenerating store
ccccccuupppbbbboooooaaarrrrrddddddd ooooffffff flflflflflflflaaaavvvvoooorrrrrrsssss wwwwwiiillllllllllll eeeeeeennnnssssssure triumphant, tasty meals.
INTRODUCTIONS 5
A NOTE FROM THE COOK MARIE-PIERRE MOINE
As a cook, herbs are my best friends. Just a handful brightens up
my emergency store cupboard concoctions: dried pasta and canned
tomatoes cry out for warming, peppery basil; green beans and flaked
tuna for robust parsley and gentle chives; and rice and frozen peas for
scented thyme or sage. Half a clove of crushed garlic will not go
amiss in any of these impromptu scenarios either.
When I am preparing a more gourmet, formal meal, herbs are
wonderful allies, too. And they have power in numbers, so I love
putting together a palette of mixed herbs—a bed of rosemary sprigs
and thyme underneath a shoulder of lamb, a generous scattering of
dried fennel and mustard seeds over belly of pork, and tarragon and
parsley in a buttery pan of fried tomatoes. At the end of cooking, I add
a scattering of fresh herbs to give a flourish of visual appeal and palate-
tingling top notes.
As an urban dweller, I am unable to have a proper herb garden but
every year I manage a couple of pots on the windowsill and have never
found the need to buy herbs—in the growing months, at least.
Running a hand through stems of rosemary or pinching off basil leaves
lifts the spirits, but don’t despair if you cannot have fresh herbs
permanently on tap; remember that many freeze well. When freezer
space is at a premium, herbs should be a priority—a ginger root, a roll
of herb butter, or a cilantro ice cube are all well worth their shelf space.

C H O O S E
With a huge variety of herbs available,
you need to know what flavors you want,
how you can use them, and where and
how to grow the plants. Whether in a
window box, a pot, or in the garden,
there’s an herb here for everyone.
PLANTED POTS AND BASKETS
The culinary-themed window boxes show you how to
produce a whole store cupboard of flavors in one pot.
These are just a guide, and you can mix and match
them to suit your needs and personal tastes.
KEY:
frost hardiness growing conditions
* Half-hardy a Prefers sun
** Frost-hardy b Prefers partial shade
*** Hardy C Prefers shade
F Tolerant of wet soil
dimensions
↕ Height ↔ Spread
8 CHOOSE —PLANTED POTS AND BASKETS
E V E R Y D A Y E S S E N T I A L S
There are some herbs that you return to time and time again to invigorate
your cooking. You can make ordinary everyday meals extraordinary with just
a handful of these herbs: perk up a roast chicken with sage, add depth to
a tomato salad with basil leaves, enliven pasta sauce with oregano,
or make a salsa with cilantro leaves. And, of course, no cook
should be without a fresh supply of thyme and parsley.
SAGE
Salvia officinalis
The evergreen leaves look good year-round in
a container. Pick it regularly to encourage the
fresh, young leaves that have the finest taste.
CILANTRO
Coriandrum sativum
Many of the most aromatic cuisines,
particularly Indian and Asian, value this
herb. It prefers semi-shade, so putting it
on a sheltered window ledge is ideal.
GROW Most of these herbs grow best in
a 50-50 mix of soil and sand to create
a well-drained mix. All can withstand some
drought except cilantro and basil, so water
regularly and add an occasional feed
of liquid fertilizer in summer.
Purple basil
Sage
Oregano
Flat-leaf
Cilantro Thyme parsley
HARVEST Pick sage leaves here and there
to keep the plant’s shape, but cut stems
from the other herbs as needed.