I don't have many herbs and spices, but I'd like to try what I've got. I recently got a few bottles but I don't know enough about the flavors and such of each to know how to use them. I'm planning on fixing up some salmon tonight, and I've got some sage, oregano, savory, dill weed and ginger. I've also got some garlic powder and italian seasoning. I was thinking of trying the sage out with the salmon tonight, but no idea how, or if that would even be good. Any ideas?
Using herbs
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mudbug
Chef Extraordinaire
sage on salmon woould not be good, IMO. Use the dill..and some garlic if you just hafta use more than one thing.
mudbug
Chef Extraordinaire
thanks for trusting me even though you have no idea what I know/don't know!
Sage is better suited for poultry IMO, but you may find that you like the way the flavor of that herb blends with fish. Folks long before us have tried diff. blends of herbs/spices with main ingredients and have come up with some general ideas (i.e., no sage on salmon), but your palate may beg to differ.
You just hafta 'speriment and find out what you like as an entree/herb-spice combo. It's fun, and the investigation is half the journey. (Although I would stay away from maple extract in spaghetti sauce, if you know what I mean.)
Sage is better suited for poultry IMO, but you may find that you like the way the flavor of that herb blends with fish. Folks long before us have tried diff. blends of herbs/spices with main ingredients and have come up with some general ideas (i.e., no sage on salmon), but your palate may beg to differ.
You just hafta 'speriment and find out what you like as an entree/herb-spice combo. It's fun, and the investigation is half the journey. (Although I would stay away from maple extract in spaghetti sauce, if you know what I mean.)
tsi88kid
Senior Cook
From the context of your sentence it sounds like you are using dried herbs. I would go fresh it is just so much more flavorful but with salmon I would use parsly, butter, lemon, and maybe garlic depends on what you like. But lemon, parsly, and butter are classic for fish.
ntbsnthlrchn
Washing Up
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- Oct 22, 2006
- Messages
- 34
But just to get an idea of how different spices taste, aren't dried okay? I wouldn't mind getting a better idea of how different spices taste, either. Thing is, there's so many, it would take ages to "just experiment" with them all, and in so many different amounts with so many different foods.
I have heard that in professional cooking course, they have a set of extracts that you can smell/taste to get an idea of how the spices are by themselves, is that true? How does that go? What is the solvent or base used in them?
It seems maybe one could get an idea of what would go well with what, as one can suppose chocolate and beef wouldn't mix without ever having tried it, for example?
I've tried experimenting with flavor extracts, too, but you can't exactly just taste them..... like orange extract, for example. If I dilute in water, it tastes awful at all tastable concentrations. Even adding sugar, it still tastes awful, kinda hard to see how it would ever make anything taste good.
I have heard that in professional cooking course, they have a set of extracts that you can smell/taste to get an idea of how the spices are by themselves, is that true? How does that go? What is the solvent or base used in them?
It seems maybe one could get an idea of what would go well with what, as one can suppose chocolate and beef wouldn't mix without ever having tried it, for example?
I've tried experimenting with flavor extracts, too, but you can't exactly just taste them..... like orange extract, for example. If I dilute in water, it tastes awful at all tastable concentrations. Even adding sugar, it still tastes awful, kinda hard to see how it would ever make anything taste good.
often a bottle will tell you what the herb or spice is most used in. Sage with poultry and stuffing, sometimes pork. Oregano with tomato, or in Greek dishes with meat and cheese. Often used in Chili. Dill goes with many salad vegetables and fish. Goes with cream and Russian dishes. Ginger is used in baking cookies and cakes but also in asian dishes...stir fries and marinades for grilling. Basil goes with tomato, many Italiam dishes. Thyme goes with red meats, veggies...French. Marjoram is great with salads /dressings, soups, pot roast. etc
Read up on the various herbs in a book like Joy of Cooking or on line at McCormack or some other source. Read the lables. experiment.
Read up on the various herbs in a book like Joy of Cooking or on line at McCormack or some other source. Read the lables. experiment.
mudbug, "Syrup in coffee! I never would have thought of that! Can I have some?!? MMMMMM!!"
tsi88kid, I wouldn't mind the idea of used fresh herbs, but I'm on somewhat of a limited budget, and this is what I've got right now on hand. I'll look into getting some fresh herbs when I can though.
Robo410, yeah, I checked the bottles. One or two of the bottles gave suggestions (the sage actually suggested fish, which is why I was asking), but three or four of them only listed what they were.
tsi88kid, I wouldn't mind the idea of used fresh herbs, but I'm on somewhat of a limited budget, and this is what I've got right now on hand. I'll look into getting some fresh herbs when I can though.
Robo410, yeah, I checked the bottles. One or two of the bottles gave suggestions (the sage actually suggested fish, which is why I was asking), but three or four of them only listed what they were.
Guess I should have posted this before, but I also got my mom's advice. She suggested putting some ground seasalt on both sides of the salmon, then putting some savory on each side. Put some butter on the top and then I put some on the side and covered the dish in aluminum foil. Baked it at 250 for about 45 and it came out really nice. Ok. Going back to watching Top Chef on Bravo now.
AllenOK
Executive Chef
ntbsnthlrchn said:
They didn't have that where I went to school. We just used the spices/herbs that were called for in the recipes, and tasted the end products. If such a thing exists, it's probably based on the essential oils in the herbs/spices.
ntbsnthlrchn said:
I actually put cocoa powder in my beef chili. 1 t of cocoa powder to 2 lbs of beef, along with the other seasonings I use, impart a nice flavor.
ntbsnthlrchn said:
Those extracts are based on alcohol, and will never taste good by themselves. They are used primarily in baking, and when combined with the other ingredients, will give a nice flavor to the finished product.
Like many people have said, this kind of thing is something you have to take the time and learn. Most of the flavor combinations have already been discovered. We just have to follow the recipes and learn what goes with what, so that when you start creating your own recipes, the seasonings work.
I had a recipe that called for fresh sage with salmon, but have since lost access to it. It's a Poached Salmon recipe in the Dinosaur BBQ Cookbook. We made it at a country club I worked at, and was GOOD!!!
auntdot
Head Chef
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2004
- Messages
- 2,418
tsim, there are traditionally many spice/food combinations.
Sage with salmon is not one of them.
One can successfully pair spices and foods that one generally do not seem to go together, as Allen mentioned age with salmon. But one must tread very carefully when one does so.
In those recipes the devil is in the details, how the spice is used, and what else it is paired with.
The simplest way to know how herbs taste is to try them.
When thinking of a recipe, will sometimes just put a bit of a dried herb on my finger and try it. And try to imagine how it would work in the dish. Will taste marjoram fairly often, I have very great difficulty with that herb.
People have been cooking for a long time and there are reasons why they put sage in poultry dishes and pair rosemary with lamb.
To vary from the accepted can at times be done quite successfully, but requires experience, thought, and a willingness to toss a bad dish.
Try your dried herbs just as they are. It is a wonderful education.
And try to think how each would taste with a food you like.
Would at the start stick with the generally accepted, or at least not season a large amount of food with a spice you re not familiar with.
Just my approach. Take care.
Sage with salmon is not one of them.
One can successfully pair spices and foods that one generally do not seem to go together, as Allen mentioned age with salmon. But one must tread very carefully when one does so.
In those recipes the devil is in the details, how the spice is used, and what else it is paired with.
The simplest way to know how herbs taste is to try them.
When thinking of a recipe, will sometimes just put a bit of a dried herb on my finger and try it. And try to imagine how it would work in the dish. Will taste marjoram fairly often, I have very great difficulty with that herb.
People have been cooking for a long time and there are reasons why they put sage in poultry dishes and pair rosemary with lamb.
To vary from the accepted can at times be done quite successfully, but requires experience, thought, and a willingness to toss a bad dish.
Try your dried herbs just as they are. It is a wonderful education.
And try to think how each would taste with a food you like.
Would at the start stick with the generally accepted, or at least not season a large amount of food with a spice you re not familiar with.
Just my approach. Take care.
tsi88kid
Senior Cook
Yea they are right about the extracts. Vanilla is a perfect example because it tastes nothing like vanilla.
Also I have heard of people putting cocoa powder into chili. I've even heard of chocolate put in. The flavors work well though because they are flavorful but have a dull texture that doesn't compromise the chilis
Also I have heard of people putting cocoa powder into chili. I've even heard of chocolate put in. The flavors work well though because they are flavorful but have a dull texture that doesn't compromise the chilis
karadekoolaid
Head Chef
Try the sage with a pork chop, or some roast pork. Make a cream sauce, add sage and a little garlic, and use it for chicken. A little goes a long way, so don't go mad!
Oregano is great in tomato sauce for pasta, along with the garlic. Try it sprinkled on fried aubergines (eggplants) with lashings of olive oil.
Savory - I can't help there, as I've never used it - it's not available over here.
Dill is excellent with fish - poached in white wine, perhaps, with a sprinkling of dill in the sauce.Make a potato salad with mayonnaise and add some dill to it. Or make a cucumber & yoghurt salad and add dill.
Ginger is good in sweets, but also very popular in Asia - with fish, chicken, meat, veg - make a stir-fry and add a tsp of ginger to it. A Carrot and potato curry with ginger...mmmm.
Garlic powder is not one of my favourites as I use fresh garlic all the time. However, garlic can be used with almost anything, so feel free to go ahead and experiment. Same with the Italian Seasoning - it's probably got oregano, basil and bay leaf in it -sprinkle some on your favourite meal!
BreezyCooking
Washing Up
I'm of the opinion that everyone's tastes differ, & you should never ever not try a combination simply because there's some written or unwritten rule that they don't "go together".
One of my favorite ways to fix whole butterflied trout is to stuff each with a large handful of fresh sage before pan-frying in extra-virgin olive oil (based on a Martha Stewart recipe). Simply delicious. I don't think using it with salmon would be all that different, so long as one remembers that sage, as well as rosemary & tarragon, & whether dried or fresh, is considered one of the "strong" herbs, & should be used with discretion until one decides how much of it one likes.
One of my favorite ways to fix whole butterflied trout is to stuff each with a large handful of fresh sage before pan-frying in extra-virgin olive oil (based on a Martha Stewart recipe). Simply delicious. I don't think using it with salmon would be all that different, so long as one remembers that sage, as well as rosemary & tarragon, & whether dried or fresh, is considered one of the "strong" herbs, & should be used with discretion until one decides how much of it one likes.
VegasDramaQueen
Senior Cook
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2004
- Messages
- 316
I love the combination of lemon and dill on fish especially trout, but I prefer a cajun spice rub on salmon, saute quickly, then in the oven in a cast iron pan for about 8 minutes on 400. Succulent and very, very good. I agree with Allen about the cocoa powder in beef chili. I've been doing that for years and everyone raves about my chili but no one knows what makes it just a bit better than most. I never tell anyone because they would freak. Who would think that chocolate and beef chili would be a great combination? The Mexicans, that's who.
RPCookin
Executive Chef
Robo410 said:
An example of differing ideas on this topic: I learned to use thyme and marjoram with poultry rather than beef. My favorite way to roast a chicken or game hen is with a basting mixture of butter, thyme, marjoram and rosemary. Last night I pan fried skinless chicken breasts that I had rubbed with crushed dried rosemary and thyme leaves, and paprika for color. Just fried them in about a teaspoon of EVOO in a nonstick skillet. My wife and I are both dieting, and I have been doing everything imaginable to try and make 6 ounces of chicken breast different enough to eat several times a week while staying within the parameters of the plan.
Salmon is good when baked with just a dusting of dried dill weed. We have also been eating a lot of tilapia, which is excellent with a good lemon pepper (we use Mrs. Dash because it's salt free), and it also works well with most any garlic mixture.
WHOA! Ok, so I've got a lot of experimenting to do! Haha! I'll definitely be coming back to this thread a lot in the future just to try some of these ideas! definitely looking forward to it! So many good ideas, lots of great help!
Everyone's been mentioning experiments, and it reminded me that during the fall I did do a small experiment with spaghetti. I'm sure a lot of you have already heard of this, but I threw a little brown-sugar/cinnamon mix in with the meat as it was browning after I had drained it a bit. I cheated on the sauce and just used a Ragu romano and garlic or something, but it came out tasting really good.
Everyone's been mentioning experiments, and it reminded me that during the fall I did do a small experiment with spaghetti. I'm sure a lot of you have already heard of this, but I threw a little brown-sugar/cinnamon mix in with the meat as it was browning after I had drained it a bit. I cheated on the sauce and just used a Ragu romano and garlic or something, but it came out tasting really good.
karadekoolaid
Head Chef
Experimenting is the very best thing you can do in the kitchen, tsim. Creative cooking!
I love them
I am a herb man myself. I usually go with Oregano and Parsley. Those are the main ones I go with. I find those go well with everything. Oregano is very strong so I would make sure you don't put too much on whatever you are preparing.
I am a herb man myself. I usually go with Oregano and Parsley. Those are the main ones I go with. I find those go well with everything. Oregano is very strong so I would make sure you don't put too much on whatever you are preparing.
