Cilantro, I love you.

[pacanis]

Huh. OK, I'll certainly take your word for it.
BTW, it was in a plastic container marked "cilantro", so I'm pretty sure it was the herb I was paying for. Those three spices were my first ever experience with fresh herbs. I used the rosemary last night and that was fine, all smelly and tasty, but the nachos I made the other night that I used some fresh made pico for..... the cilantro definitely was like chewing on a blade of grass. It had me thinking I should stick with dried spices.....

 

[GB]

It is possible your cilantro was mislabeled pacanis. It looks almost exactly like flat leaf parsley which could have very little flavor sometimes.

Cilantro has a very strong flavor. It is one of the most powerful herbs IMO.

I am a cilantro lover. It is my favorite herb bar none.

 

[pacanis]

I'll pick up a different brand next time. I saw one of the stores I shop had a different brand.

 

[MexicoKaren]

ExPat girl - I have read that, for some people, cilantro tastes like soap. In fact, a quick Google, and I found an entire website devoted to the hatred of cilantro!
I Hate Cilantro - an anti cilantro community Who knew?

 

[Barbara L]

Cilantro is definitely an acquired taste. I started out with small amounts in fresh salsa. I like it now in salsa and guacamole but haven't had it in anything else yet.

Barbara

 

[QSis]

Yep, I'm a cilantro-hater. Can't eat the stuff. Tastes exactly like chewing plastic, on my taste buds.

Can't eat papaya, either. Tastes like turpentine to me.

Lee

 

[pacanis]

Yep, I'm a cilantro-hater. Can't eat the stuff. Tastes exactly like chewing plastic, on my taste buds.

Can't eat papaya, either. Tastes like turpentine to me.

Lee

Did someone say, gin?
I can't belive I used to drink the stuff when I smell it.
Still looking for some not-so-bland cilantro when I get out again.... just to see if I like it or not.

 

[Russellkhan]

I don't generally think of cilantro as an acquired taste, more as something that some small percentage of people just don't like. They seem to "taste it wrong". The description I hear most often from these people is "it tastes like soap".

Note to Pacanis (and any others new to cooking with cilantro): I tend to think of cilantro's flavor as "fresh", and really as more of an aromatic. Used properly, it can give a whole dish a very garden fresh flavor. Things it pairs well with include lime (which also helps with the "fresh effect") and chili peppers. Cuisines that use cilantro include Thai, Mexican, Vietnamese and (East) Indian.

When cooking with cilantro the most commonly used part is the leaves. Try to add them at the very end of the cooking process, saving some to add as a garnish. To get the flavor cooked into a dish, the best way is to use the last half inch or so of stems and the first half inch or so of roots, smashed with the flat of a knife and minced. Unfortunately, not many stores sell cilantro with any roots attached. If you can't find cilantro with roots, just smash, mince and cook with the last inch or so of stem.

 

[Barbara L]

Maybe it was just me (and a few friends). lol I like it much better now than I used to. It just took me awhile to get used to it at first.

Speaking of tasting like soap, that is how I feel about raspberries. I can eat them in some things, but most raspberry flavored things taste like soap to me.

Barbara

 

[Russellkhan]

I suppose we'll have to wait around to hear if others have had similar experience to yours. For me, I've liked it since first taste.

Looking around the anti-cilantro site that MexicoKaren linked, I see that the soapy description seems to be a common theme among the complaints, and that they suspect it (dislike of cilantro) is a hereditary trait.

 

[Russellkhan]

Oh, and to get back on the topic of cilantro poetry, there's a whole page of anti-cilantro haiku over there.

 

[SunnyFL]

I LOVE cilantro.

My DH doesn't and so I have to sneak it into recipes. I make a mean taco salad that he loves and put a healthy dose of cilantro in it -- that's about the only time he actually likes it.

 

[DramaQueen]

I've mentioned this before is other cilantro threads, but here goes again. I never buy cilantro until the day I'm going to use it. For some reason, cilantro loses it's flavor and most of its scent after a couple of days in the fridge. Cilantro has a powerful flavor and aroma when fresh and can "make" a dish, especially Mexican style soups. You know it's there, no mistake about it.

I can't do without it but only if it's less than 3 days old. So if your cilantro has lost it's punch it may be beyond the freshest point. Don't buy limp cilantro either.

 

[pacanis]

OK. I bought a bunch of "loose" cilantro. What is the best way to keep it fresh?
And, when you purchase a fresh spice, before it goes bad (not that I would know), would it make sense to dry it and still keep it for use?

Thank you.

 

[B'sgirl]

Cilantro is the best! We put it in almost every Mexican and Asian dish we eat. We've tried to grow it so we always have it fresh but we failed the last two year. Third time's the charm, eh?

 

[marigeorge]

I like to add a handful of cilantro when marinating shrimp in red curry paste or sambal oelek, garlic and fresh ginger. Also lots of it in pico de gallo and salsa. I think it is an herb you either love or hate.

Pacanis, I usually pick all the dead/wilted pieces out of the bunch and then put it in a glass of water with a loose fitting plastic bag over it. It is pretty fragile and doesn't keep well like Italian parsley. I haven't found any dried cilantro that tasted anything like when it is fresh.

 

[pacanis]

I like to add a handful of cilantro when marinating shrimp in red curry paste or sambal oelek, garlic and fresh ginger. Also lots of it in pico de gallo and salsa. I think it is an herb you either love or hate.

Pacanis, I usally pick all the dead/wilted pieces out of the bunch and then put it in a glass of water with a loose fitting plastic bag over it. It is pretty fragile and doesn't keep well like Italian parsley. I haven't found any dried cilantro that tasted anything like when it is fresh.

Thanks marigene. In the fridge?

 

[marigeorge]

Yes, in the fridge.

 

[GB]

And, when you purchase a fresh spice, before it goes bad (not that I would know), would it make sense to dry it and still keep it for use?

Thank you.

Dried cilantro is basically flavorless.

 

[DramaQueen]

I like to add a handful of cilantro when marinating shrimp in red curry paste or sambal oelek, garlic and fresh ginger. Also lots of it in pico de gallo and salsa. I think it is an herb you either love or hate.

Pacanis, I usually pick all the dead/wilted pieces out of the bunch and then put it in a glass of water with a loose fitting plastic bag over it. It is pretty fragile and doesn't keep well like Italian parsley. I haven't found any dried cilantro that tasted anything like when it is fresh.

If you're buying yellowed and wilted cilantro, you're wasting good money. It has long past it's prime and has little of the punch and aroma fresh cilantro has. I throw out any cilantro that is 4 days old. When I buy it, it's very green (every leaf) very fresh and very flavorful.

Dried cilantro is NOTHING like the fresh stuff. Same with basil. Don't even go there. It will add nothing to your dish. Trust me.