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Herbs are usually the leaves of low growing plants/shrubs, but may be the stems, flowers, seeds or roots of a plant.
Using herbs in any type of cooking is a delicious and healthy way to add flavouring and character to a dish. Many Herbs are also valued for their natural medicinal properties!
Herbs are generally milder than spices in flavour and used for delicate seasoning, whereas spices are strong and distinct, adding a a more distinctive taste.
Grinders and Shakers (Shakers not available in the US)
Shakers Only (Not available in the US)
Can't decide? Try Mrs Rogers Select a Spice in segmented jars!
Basil
Description: Basil is a herb with spicy overtones of aniseed and is often associated with Italian cooking. Basil complements - tomatoes, green vegetables, salads, soups, eggs, fish, cheese, lamb, pizza and pasta sauces. Basil is delicious with tomatoes, cooked or as a salad.
Suggested Uses:
- Basil is an essential ingredient in any tomato based pasta sauce or soup.
- Basil makes a delicious salad dressing - combine olive oil and lemon juice with Garlic and a sprinkling of Basil, salt and pepper.
- Potatoes and vegetables are great roasted with olive oil and Basil.
- Sprinkle Basil onto pizzas and pasta, together with Oregano, for an authentic Italian flavour.
- Sprinkle a mixture of Basil, salt, Cumin and Coriander onto lamb chops before grilling.
- Use in stuffings, omelettes and savoury scones.
Health Benefits: Basil has proven strong antibacterial and antispasmodic properties. Basil has been used as a remedy for bladder and kidney ailments, to relieve menstrual cramps, and as a remedy for gonorrhoea, catarrh, dysentery, and chronic diarrhoea. Sweet basil can be applied to insect stings or venomous bites to draw out poison. Basil acts as an effective stimulant in cases of collapse.
Available in grinders (US and NZ) and refill tubes (NZ only).
Chives
Description: Chives from Northern Europe. The arid dried leaves are specially selected for freshness and colour.
Suggested Uses: Chives work well as a more subtle onion flavour than raw onion in soups or egg dishes. They come into their own as a garnish for cold food, specially dairy products, or to minimise the powerful cooking odours. Use sparingly for best results and add shortly before serving to preserve flavour.
Available in NZ only.
Dill
Description: From Europe. Fresh sun-dried tips. Completely natural, no additives.
Suggested Uses: It is an essential ingredient in Scandinavian cookery. It is suitable for fish, yoghurt and vegetables. Dill imparts a wonderful delicate flavour. Try on salads, or as part of vinegar-based dressings. Always add at the last moment of cooking, and comes into its own as a garnish.
Available in NZ only.
Fennel
Description: Fennel is from the Mediterranean. The sun-dried seeds are used. It is one of the oldest herbs, prized for its qualities to aid digestion.
Suggested Uses: It is an important part of Chinese cooking and is very suited to vegetarian dishes. It blends vegetables well and is especially useful in cooking oily fish. Add near the end of cooking.
Available in NZ only.
Garden Herbs
Description: Mrs Roger's Garden Herbs contains parsley, thyme, basil, marjoram, tarragon and chives. This combination of herbs is from the best traditions of classic French cooking and will deliver a superbly balanced herb flavour.
Suggested Uses: Use as a substitute for the listed herbs of your recipe. Use to accent flavour in eggs, soups, salad and rice. Add near the end of the cooking process.
Available in NZ only.
Garlic Granules
Description: Garlic is a member of the lily family and a close relative of the onion. The part of the garlic plant that is valuable as a herb and medicine is the bulb. A single bulb is composed of 8 to 12 sections called cloves.
Garlic is used in cuisines throughout the world. It is indispensable in French, Chinese, Italian, Thai and Mexican foods.
Suggested Uses: Garlic is great in ANYTHING savoury, but some of the most common uses are in:
- Pasta sauces and all pasta dishes
- Stir-fries (an essential)
- Stews, casseroles and soups
- Add to dips, Hummus, sauces and to mayonnaise
- In a vinaigrette - Mix with oil, vinegar, salt and freshly ground pepper
- Delicious used in marinades
- Omelettes and scrambled eggs
- Rub into poultry, pork, or beef before cooking
- Use to make garlic butter for breads, and for sautéing vegetables.
Health Benefits: The health benefits of garlic were documented by the Chinese as long as 5000 years ago and it was thought to be mystical and even worshiped in many cultures. Today we see that there is good scientific reason to place value on garlic.
- Garlic has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-cancer properties
- It helps maintain health of the immune system
- It helps maintain cardiovascular health
- Garlic helps maintain healthy blood pressure and sugar levels
- It displays antioxidant ability
- Garlic protects against blood clots and increases circulation
Garlic is also useful as a natural insecticide.
Available in grinders (US and NZ) and refill tubes (NZ only).
Oregano
Description: Oregano, or wild marjoram comes from Europe. It is often confused with Marjoram but is more pungent. it works better for meat dishes than marjoram with a sweet spicy effect.
Suggested Uses: Oregano is an important ingredient in Italian cooking and is widely used in tomato based dishes, on pizza and pasta sauces, with vegetables and with cheese. Add midway through cooking but extra quantities will be required to compensate for heat loss.
Health Benefits: Oregano is much more than a culinary herb; it's an antispasmoic, calmative, carminative, diaphoretic, expectorant, and a stomach tonic.
Available in NZ only.
Parsley
Description: It has a mild and pleasant flavour easily lost if not expertly dried. It is rich in Vitamin C, Iodine and Iron and will help digestion.
Suggested Uses: The delicate flavour becomes substantially diminished by the cooking process and will be better with cheese and egg dishes. However this herb comes into its own as an ideal garnish on most hot or cold dishes where it also has the quality of neutralising onion odour.
Available in NZ only.
Rosemary
Description: Rosemary leaves from North Africa. Sun-dried, fresh leaves. It has well-recognised antibacterial qualities and helps digestion of fat.
Suggested Uses: A warm piney smoky flavour particularly liked in Italy, for chicken or lamb, (particularly perfuming barbecued meats), and also used in French and Indian dishes. It enhances vinegars, wine, sugars, milk and sweet dishes. Add early in cooking.
Available in NZ only.
Tarragon
Description: Tarragon from Asia. It is very carefully sun-dried to preserve subtle and distinctive flavour. Tarragon has been used since early Greek times. Due to the difficulty of retaining the true subtleties of flavour, this is one of the most expensive herbs, but it is well worth its costs for the flavour it imparts. It is a necessity in every kitchen and basic to French cooking. Its great asset is it will season in place of salt and therefore important to health conscious cooks.
Suggested Uses: It has an affinity with dairy products, eggs and sauces. Also good with white meats, salad and is an attractive garnish. It is an essential partner to use with other herbs. Add towards the end of cooking.
Available in NZ only.
Thyme
Description: Our Thyme comes from Europe. It has a warm aromatic flavour with slightly sweet/sharp caraway undertones.
Suggested Uses: A basic kitchen herb, it goes with the robust flavours of cooked meats, especially white meats, sauces (especially fish sauces), stuffing and most vegetables. Thyme also has a great affinity with lemon and can be used as a garnish for a salad. Due to its preserving qualities it is excellent for pate, sausages, pickles etc. Add early in the cooking process to obtain the rounded flavour.
Health Uses: Thyme is recognised for its antiseptic qualities and has many ancient traditional uses. It also helps with the digestion of meats and flatulence-inducing vegetables.
Available in NZ only.
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