Mar 13 2018

Tuesday’s Tip with The Kitchen Whisperer – Fresh Herb Chopping Trick You Should Know

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Find out today how to prevent fresh herbs from flying all over creation when you chop them with this simple trick!

I am a HUGE fan of fresh herbs. If I had the time I would literally have an entire garden dedicated to just fresh herbs. Basil, Cilantro and Parsley are my 3 besties in the kitchen. The smell of fresh dill, lavender and thyme are amazing. Rosemary…eh, not so much. It tastes like soap and it’s prickly which means I get jabbed like the dickens when I work with it. Plus if I’m being fully transparent here, I kill it. Every single Christmas I buy one of those Rosemary shaped Christmas trees for the kitchen and every January it’s dead. Like it shatters when you touch it dead. I’ve made peace with it that I’ll never grow it and I’m okay with that.

So while I have a pantry full of dried spices I’ll reach for fresh any day. There’s just something comforting about using fresh herbs albeit it the smell, the colors or just that ‘freshness’ it imparts on a dish. Plus the colors are so much more vibrant (obviously). I LOVE making Sunday gravy and seeing ribbons of fresh basil throughout. Or when I make a pizza on Friday night and I see the fresh oregano and basil sprinkled on top. To me, fresh herbs = homemade – at least visually.

However one thing that can be a pain about dealing with fresh herbs is chopping them. Sure you can roll them up if they are leaves or do your best to squinch (squinch is a combination of squish and pinch in TKW language) it up real tight and chop it small. What ends up happening? It flies all over the board. Well today I’m sharing with you a simple trick that can help prevent this!

So before I get into this there are a few ‘kitchen’ rules when chopping fresh herbs.

Your herbs must be clean and DRY. I cannot stress the importance of the last part. Wet herbs, when chopped, will turn mushy. Dry them gently, but completely.
Use a sharp chef knife. A dull blade will tear and bruise the herbs. If you already have a knife set but do not get them professionally sharpened, I HIGHLY recommend this knife sharpener. It’s THE BEST out there!

Okay the herbs now – on a cutting board add your herbs and sprinkle just a pinch of salt on then before you cut. The salt will help keep the herbs on the board and not go flying all over the place.

Make it a meal!

Pairs Perfectly With:

2 responses

Melanie Aponte

March 15, 2018

Hi,

I love fresh herbs as well. My living room has a cadre of herbs growing under grow lights since our winter was not real friendly this year. My greatest disappointment was the loss of my rosemary plant that was 3 feet tall. You mentioned that you hated rosemary since it was prickly. Yes I agree it can be prickly if you are using dried but when it’s planted in the ground it’s a different animal! It’s softer and fragrant and wonderful with grilled vegetables, thrown in the bottom of a cast iron skillet with olive oil to bring out the aroma and then fry some potatoes. Life is grand with fresh rosemary. I highly recommend planting it in the garden. It’s my go to herb other than basil, thyme, margoram, lemon balm, oregano, tarragon, chives and dill which all find a place in my garden. The newest addition to my garden this year will be garlic chives, borage and sorrel. So please give Rosemary a chance but do plant her in the ground! Thanks again! Melanie

Reply
1. TKWAdmin
  
  March 16, 2018
  
  Hi Melanie!
  
  I’ll give it another shot but I feel guilty every time I kill the plant. Mmm I LOVE LOVE LOVE sorrel!
  
  Best Kitchen Wishes!
  
  Reply