Posted by Rebecca Malik on April 21, 2010 01:24 p.m.
If you enjoy cooking, you know what a huge difference fresh herbs make in any dish. The added flavors and vibrant aromas make an ordinary dish extraordinary. They also make food look beautiful – think about how lovely a few sprigs of fresh rosemary look baked atop a golden brown chicken. However, cooking with fresh herbs can have its difficulties. Purchased at the grocery store, they are much more expensive than dried herbs. They also have a very limited period of time for use after you bring them home. It’s so frustrating to pay the premium for fresh herbs and end up throwing most of them away before you use them. I began to believe that a home herb garden was possible a few years ago, when I purchased a small potted basil plant from the grocery in lieu of buying it in the little $5 packages. Having a ready supply of perfectly fresh basil was easy, fun, delicious and encouraged me to be more adventurous with my cooking. I soon realized I didn’t need an outdoor garden to successfully have all of my herbs available at home. Luckily, herbs are relatively easy to grow. You can start your own indoor herb garden in a few simple steps.1. Choose which herbs to plant. Which ones do you most often find yourself using? Which herbs do you avoid using because you don’t want to purchase them fresh? Which ones would you enjoy experimenting with in your cooking? Some common herbs include cilantro, basil, oregano, rosemary, sage, dill, mint and parsley. I also love lavender for its lovely scent. 2. Purchase your herbs. You can purchase seeds (cheapest) or individual plants (fastest to grow). They are available in garden shops as well as often hardware stores and sometimes in grocery stores. You can also order through catalogs and online. At the same time, also purchase a good quality potting soil.
3. Design your “garden.” A series of small pots works well. You can get creative and use old jars and containers… just about anything. Make sure that the pot is at least 6” deep to allow for adequate space to root.
4. Plant your herbs. Some individual herbs do require small variations in planting to ensure that they do well (i.e. pebbles placed in bottom of pot to provide root drainage). Simply plant per the instructions provided with your seedling or seeds.
5. Place your plantings on a sunny windowsill (south facing if possible) and wait for them to take root and grow. If you have grown them from seedlings, allow them to sprout new leaves prior to harvesting.
6. Enjoy your fresh herbs! It’s that simple. Since starting using fresh herbs, all of my dishes taste better and gradually, I have found myself finding ways to incorporate more fresh ingredients, leading me to eat more healthily. One of the most wonderful things about using fresh herbs? It has encouraged me to slow down and appreciate each element of my cooking and enjoy the overall experience. Don’t delay – establishing your own herbs is very easy and will save you time and money. Have you tried building an indoor herb garden? How has it affected you and your cooking?