SEEING-TO-BELIEVE
Head Chef
Do you use bay leaves?
- Thread starter SEEING-TO-BELIEVE
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Yes, I do. Do you?
msmofet
Chef Extraordinaire
- Joined
- Apr 5, 2009
- Messages
- 13,952
For corned beef.
OP
OP
SEEING-TO-BELIEVE
Head Chef
yes, sometimes
i saw some article about bay leafs and didn't had the energy to read what they wanted to say about it.
so i asked you..
i saw some article about bay leafs and didn't had the energy to read what they wanted to say about it.
so i asked you..
GotGarlic
Chef Extraordinaire
I have a bay tree in my herb garden. I use it in every soup, sauce and stew I make.
Andy M.
Certified Pretend Chef
It's a great flavor in soups and stews.
thymeless
Sous Chef
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2006
- Messages
- 638
All the time
I use them. It's not so much that I notice when I use them, but I notice if I forget them.
pepperhead212
Executive Chef
Does this answer your question?
Bay Laurel, about 6 years old. 7-29-23 by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Like GG, I have a Bay Laurel, but I have to bring it indoors in the off season, and I have to trim it way back, and I dry them, and give them to friends. I use a lot of fresh ones, and the first book I saw calling for fresh bay was Patricia Wells' TRATTORIA. That got me to grow my first bay laurel. She called for large numbers of bay leaves - 4 to 6, compared to the one one or two in most recipes.
One thing I do use some dried ones is grinding up to use in some Cajun cooking. I use do it often, so I only grind about 2 tsp at a time. There might be other cuisines that use it this way, but this is the only one I use it for.
Bay Laurel, about 6 years old. 7-29-23 by pepperhead212, on FlickrLike GG, I have a Bay Laurel, but I have to bring it indoors in the off season, and I have to trim it way back, and I dry them, and give them to friends. I use a lot of fresh ones, and the first book I saw calling for fresh bay was Patricia Wells' TRATTORIA. That got me to grow my first bay laurel. She called for large numbers of bay leaves - 4 to 6, compared to the one one or two in most recipes.
One thing I do use some dried ones is grinding up to use in some Cajun cooking. I use do it often, so I only grind about 2 tsp at a time. There might be other cuisines that use it this way, but this is the only one I use it for.
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HeyItsSara
Sous Chef
i bought an enormous container of them and instead of using a few at a time, started using handfuls at a time. at some point i realized that more is not better.
larry_stewart
Master Chef
Soups, stews and sometimes pickling. I also have a bay leaf plant that is in a pot and I over winter in my garage , Its going on its 3rd year. Produces way more leaves then Ill ever need.
I would like to try another bay laurel. My first attempt never even made it to New Year's when I brought it in.
lI was wondering, is it possible to keep it small, manageable? Meaning a size that I could maneuver up and down a short flight of stairs when necessary?
Or will it eventually be too big for that.
lI was wondering, is it possible to keep it small, manageable? Meaning a size that I could maneuver up and down a short flight of stairs when necessary?
Or will it eventually be too big for that.
larry_stewart
Master Chef
Mine has been in a relatively small pot for 3 year already. It's a small plant with many leaves. Not heavy at all. In the past I've tried keeping it indoors for the winter, but with little success, Now I keep it in the garage during the winter. it never gets below freezing in the garage. Eventually it may outgrow the pot, but as long as I keep trimming it, I should be ok for awhile. Ill post a pic later today so you can see the size of the plant ( and pot).
dr morbius
Senior Cook
I make soup almost 100 times a year, and there's nearly always a bay leaf in there. I live in a very small place, so growing a plant won't work for me. But I buy them fresh from the grocery store. I get a couple dozen leaves for two bucks, so my days of buying dried leaves is way behind me.
I agree with those who point out that it's a bad idea to overdo it with bay leaves.
Also, by the way, one day try throwing a bay leaf in your pot of plain white long grain rice. You'll be surprised, I think, at how much it adds.
I agree with those who point out that it's a bad idea to overdo it with bay leaves.
Also, by the way, one day try throwing a bay leaf in your pot of plain white long grain rice. You'll be surprised, I think, at how much it adds.
jennyema
Chef Extraordinaire
I use them all the time. But prefer dry Turkish ones.
GotGarlic
Chef Extraordinaire
How do you know it didn't make it?
I ask because when I first bought a bay laurel, I thought it was tropical, so I brought it into the house for the winter. It lost all its leaves and I thought it had died. So I threw it out and bought another one. Lather, rinse, repeat for probably 3 more years. Then one year we were busy and never brought it inside. It grew beautifully and has been happy out there for the past 20 years or so. Just saying it might regrow in the spring.
Our bay tree is so happy, in fact, that we're going to be chopping one of its trunks down this fall and removing the sprouts that come up from the roots. These are the best pictures I could get this morning. My eyes are really sensitive to bright light right now.
GG, several points.
Garden Centers sell them as annuals, not as perenials.
It is native to the Mediterranean region.
The Toronto Master Gardeners recommend/say in Canada, bring it in for the winter.
So remembering this is Canada with severe winters, certainly compared to the Virginia's, and even Larry's in New Jersey, I brought it in.
The fact it did not survive was completely due to the incompetence of the person in charge, namely... moi. My space inside is severely limited and the garage is not heated, it would still have frozen in there.
Garden Centers sell them as annuals, not as perenials.
It is native to the Mediterranean region.
The Toronto Master Gardeners recommend/say in Canada, bring it in for the winter.
So remembering this is Canada with severe winters, certainly compared to the Virginia's
, and even Larry's in New Jersey, I brought it in.The fact it did not survive was completely due to the incompetence of the person in charge, namely... moi. My space inside is severely limited and the garage is not heated, it would still have frozen in there.
And that is a BEAUTIFUL tree GG, just gorgeous!
HeyItsSara
Sous Chef
i've heard that scattered in your pantry, they also keep insects away.
We can't grow bay here either so I've never had fresh bay laurel. But I love the dried. And it keeps forever. I mostly put it in tomato sauce dishes. You're supposed to remove it once you're finished cooking. And some advice that if you're long cooking to remove it before or add it late.
