It was only a few years ago that I would have tossed stems from many herbs used in the kitchen. I had either assumed they were too tough to eat, not meant to be eaten or didn’t have flavor.
I’ve learned to use them in many ways and love to dry stems (both by dehydration and by salting). But sometimes I just need to use them on the fly.
Green stems from any herb (for example, basil, parsley or cilantro) can be cut fine or tossed into anything you’re cooking in the exact same way you’d use a bay leaf. Large stems are easy to remove once they’ve cooked with the rest of your meal. They are a great addition to sauces, soups and even sitrfrys.
What do you use your stems for?
Great idea! I usually save them for stock but I’ll give this a try some time. Actually just posted about using scraps recently: http://liveloveandsustain.com/2013/01/26/waste-not-want-not/
I often cut them up with the herbs and use them that way (ok, not a big rosemary stem, but for coriander and basil? you bet!). Faster, easier, and no complaints so far.
Awesome Vieux Bandit! What was the old quote; better to do and ask forgiveness than to ask for permission and wait?
I usually throw my bigger herb stems into the freezer for future use in veg broth–as long as they’re not dill stems, that is. Dill stems are an excellent way to accidentally turn your stock into something reminiscent of pickle brine. Little stems absolutely get chopped up and added to whatever I’m cooking.
Hi Eileen!
It took me a few reads to evaluate if ‘pickle soup’ would be a good thing or not!
Agree re: little stems too! Thanks for sharing and great ideas! Joel
I put them in when I make beef or chicken bone broth. That’s another good idea.
It is indeed Susan!
Joel