Herbs every home garden should have
- Rosemary. You can see the beautifully tender tips of this perennial poking through fences right across town, and the aroma of its oil is wonderful. Add rosemary to any style of sauce you like and you’ll be on a winner: with beef stock – 10/10; with lamb stock – 10/10, with cream, 10/10; with a Chinese soy base – 10/10; with butter 10/10. It’s always there, but it’s at its best in spring.
- Thyme just won’t go away. When the garden is bare, and the cupboard is drab, you’ve always got thyme. It’s particularly wonderful with mushrooms, and also with liver.
- Oregano is fundamental to all gardens. It’s vigorous, loves tomatoes, and is always there when most of them have wimped out. Sprinkle it furiously into any stock, late.
- Basil for all the reasons everybody in the world with space grows it every spring. Don’t be the odd person out.
- Tarragon is a wonderful perennial. No chicken should be cooked without it; any risotto is enhanced by it; all salads love it. And every year it pops up, when you’ve forgotten all about it.
- Parsley is supremely under-rated. Don’t chop it, just pick it and use it generously.