Basil is just one of the many herbs you can add to foods to improve flavor as you cut down on salt, fat, and sugar. Try adding fresh, snipped basil to tomato sauces or sprinkling over peas or zucchini. site map	Herbs Culinary herbs can be bought fresh or dried. Almost all grocery stores carry fresh herbs in the produce section. If you want to cut costs and improve the fragrance of your kitchen, consider planting a windowsill herb garden. You can pick up herb garden kits at many home improvement stores in the gardening section. Herbs add flavor to recipes and add kick, especially if you're cutting back on sugar, salt, or fats. Try experimenting with different herbs.  If you're worried about ruining an entire dish before you're sure, set aside a bit of your recipe and spice it up, reserving the rest for serving in case you don't enjoy the new taste. With a little trial and error, you will update old standards, improve new recipes, and even create something that may become the family's new favorite! And now... the basics... Substituting Fresh Herbs for Dry Herbs: When using fresh herbs in place of dried herbs in a recipe, the basic rule is 3:1. Use 3 times more fresh herbs than you would dry. Keep in mind it is much easier to substitute fresh for dried than the other way around. Washing Herbs Fresh herbs should be washed before using. Wash them as you would lettuce or other leafy vegetables. It's best to pat them dry with paper towels rather than spinning them dry in a salad spinner or similar device. Storing Herbs When storing fresh herbs, be sure you pat them dry between paper towels before putting them into the refrigerator.  This will preserve their longevity. Store fresh herbs in a perforated plastic bag or container Fresh herbs rapidly lose their flavor, so purchase them or cut them (if growing your own) close to the time you intend to use them. Preparing Herbs for Cooking Depending upon what your recipe calls for: Chopped or snipped: This means you can either lay the herbs on a cutting board and chop with a chef's knife or you can use scissors to snip the herbs. When cutting a large amount of herbs with scissors, it is easier to snip the herbs into mid-size pieces, then put them into a bowl and continue to snip them with scissors. Cut into thin strips or chiffonnade-style: Stack leaves and roll tightly. Cut into thin strips (about 1/8-inch wide) using a sharp knife on a cutting board. Sprigs: When a recipe calls for a "sprig" typically they're talking about a bunch of herbs without their stems. For rosemary, marjoram, oregano, sage, and thyme, you can just strip off leaves by dragging your fingers down the stems popping off the leaves. For tender-stem herbs, like parsley or cilantro, you can snip them and, if you get a bit of the tender stem into the mix, it won't hurt anything. Using a food processor to chop herbs is tricky business. Use short bursts of chopping to be sure you end up with chopped herbs, not herb paste. Cooking with Herbs Dried herbs can be added at almost any stage in a recipe. Fresh herbs, however, will lose their flavor if added to early, so add fresh herbs near the end of the cooking process. Delicate herbs like chives, cilantro, basil, and dill should be cooked no more than a minute or two. Heartier herbs like dill seed, rosemary, tarragon, and oregano can be cooked for up to 20 minutes. For baked goods, obviously you will have to add the herbs at the time the batter is prepared. Herbs in cold foods When adding herbs to a dish to be served cold, it is better to add the herbs at the time of preparation, then refrigerate for several hours to allow the flavors to blend. Consider adding a few fresh leaves or a sprinkling of more fresh herbs to the top of cold-served dishes when serving for extra flavor and eye appeal. So... what herbs go with what? Well, there's really no accounting for individual tastes (be creative - don't limit yourself to this list!), but here are some standard uses for common herbs (and some of our recipes to try): Basil - tomato dishes, fresh pesto, peas, zucchini Tomato Zucchini Stir Fry Spring Vegetables Pizza Chuck Steak Italian Pasta Salad Zucchini Casserole Chives - dips, potatoes (especially baked with some low-fat sour cream!), tomatoes Sunday Brunch Eggs Lemon Stuffed Mushrooms Lime Butter Chicken Chicken Diane Crispy Baked Potatoes Cilantro - salsas, tomatoes, Mexican and Asian dishes Chinese Garlic Shrimp Sesame Chicken Salad Scallops in Black Bean Sauce Garlic Shrimp Texas Caviar Salad Dill - carrots, fish, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes Grilled Dill Salmon Swedish Shrimp Salad Dilled Green Beans Confetti Salad Orzo Cheese Salad Mint - carrots, fruits and fruit salads, peas, teas Roman Potato Salad Baked Apples Barbecued Lamb Spareribs California Melon Dip Mexican Chicken with Fresh Salsa Oregano - peppers, tomatoes, and almost all Italian pasta dishes Italian Pasta Salad Chili Con Carne New Mexico Vegetable Pie Scrambled Egg Breakfast Pizza Italian Pepperoni Soup Parsley - potato salads, seafood dishes, Italian and Indian dishes, as a garnish for all kinds of dishes Parisian Neptune Sandwiches Down East Shrimp Newburg Easy Coq au Vin Meat Loaf Italiano Moroccan Spinich Salad Rosemary - chicken, fish, lamb, pork, soups, stews, and tomato dishes Rosemary Pork Roast Grilled Vegetable Kabobs Baked Swordfish Herbed Turkey Roast Hong Kong Chicken Wings Sage - poultry dishes, stuffings, pork Roman Potato Salad Tarragon - chicken, eggs, fish, dressings, vinegars Chicken Tarragon Tarragon Steak Salad Shrimp Stir Fry Thyme - eggs, potatoes, poultry, squash, tomatoes Thyme Mushroom Fish Bake Grilled Pork Loin Atlanta Turkey Creole Style Harvest Salad Green Beans Italiano Whether you use dried or fresh herbs, always remember that trying new dishes, new methods of preparation, and new tastes is part of the fun when dieting. Keep things fresh and interesting! Bon appetit! powered by FreeFind	Sign up for our periodic newsletter to get the latest tips, tricks, hints, help, recipes, site updates, and much more.
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