I'll have to ask Maureen what her mojito recipe is and share it with
you Charlotte. She makes one heckuva drink and we use garden mint
but I don't know the variety. (Do you know how to rid it from the
garden? And I mean entirely!)
In My Garden Blog
Mid-Atlantic
July 16, 2009
By
Charlotte Kidd,
Radnor, PA
Cuban oregano and lemon grass -- among the unusual herbs reflecting our diverse cultural tastes.
Mingling Herbs and Cultures
"Who here enjoys a Mojito?" A blond woman in the group waves her hand. I pass the 4-inch nursery pot of dark green "mojito mint" in her direction. Mojito mint (Mentha x villosa), which hails from Cuba, is the herbal component of the popular cocktail mojito -- made with rum, sugar, and lime juice.
Anyone use lemon grass? A dark-haired woman explains how she adds the finely sliced blades to coconut milk (with chicken and more) to serve over rice -- a recipe she learned in St. John, Virgin Islands. Examining the long-leafed plant, another woman reminds us to use its white bulb bruised and its blades minced for a soothing tea. Lemon grass, a tender perennial from India, is a mainstay in Thai and Vietnamese cooking that we can overwinter in a pot indoors.
What about epazote (eh-pa-zo-tay)? The bushy, green leafy herb drew a blank, even from this ethnically diverse group of gardeners and neighbors at the Hansberry Garden and Nature Center on Wayne Ave. in Philadelphia, PA. They'd gathered for a flea market and a Pennsylvania Horticultural Society City Garden series presentation -- "Herbs in the Garden."
I read my notes and the label. From Central America and the Aztecs, epazote (aka Mexican tea, wormseed) is a favorite culinary and medicinal herb in Mexico and Guatemala. Cooks use the young leaves of this strongly scented, slightly bitter herb to flavor beans, corn, and fish, and to stop gastric discomfort after eating beans. Ahhh -- "Beano," "Be-Sure" said several folks, nodding their heads.
Bringing The World Into Our Kitchens
As we Americans connect deeper within our communities, travel more, and make friends from various cultures, our culinary tastes are likewise expanding. We still enjoy traditional Mediterranean herbs -- basil, rosemary, oregano, and Italian and curly parsley. Who can resist growing basil in abundance for pesto and for tomato-mozzarella salad? French tarragon and garlic chives are popular continental garnishes for chicken and fish. These kitchen garden favorites are also great container plants, available fresh to anyone with a foot or two of a day's sun on the deck, patio, fire escape.
We're also experimenting with Indian, Mexican, French, Spanish, and Central and South American favorites -- cilantro, lemon grass, aloe vera, pepino, Vietnamese coriander.
Herb selections are getting deeper and wider. Though I'm satisfied with fragrant 'Sweet Genovese' basil, not so other gardeners and cooks. The basil house at Russell's Wholesale Gardens in Richboro, PA holds at least 30 types of culinary and ornamental basil. Lemon, Minette, Green Pepper, Miniature Purple, Spicy Globe, Purple Ruffles, Red Lettuce, Amethyst Improved, Purple, Holy (Sacred), African Blue, variegated Pesto Perpetuoso, Thai, Clove, Cinnamon, Cuban, Aussie Sweetie, Mammouth.
Whoa. With only so much room in the car, we stopped at 20 basil cultivars to bring for "Show and Tell." With three more herb houses to browse, we narrowed our "Take-Aways" to about 100 plants including succulent Cuban oregano 'Cerveza 'n Lime,' an ornamental plectranthus masquerading as an oregano.
Newbees and novelties we couldn't resist. Oregano -- Crispy Golden, Hot & Spicy, Kent Beauty, Mexican. Thyme -- Golden Lemon, Oregano, Silver, Lemon Mist, Pinewood, Nutmeg, Spicy Orange. Sage -- Dwarf Garden, Purple, Tricolor, All Gold, Berggarten, Mexican Bush, Golden Pineapple. Rosemary -- Barbeque (for grilling skewers), Logee's, Arp, Santa Barbara, Gorizia. YUM!
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Comments on Mingling Herbs and Cultures
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We welcome your questions and comments about this column. If you have gardening questions unrelated to the column, please ask them on our message boards.
TC
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Pat M
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Mmmmmmmmmmm........I only wish my local garden centers on Long
Island would get with it, and offer some of the more exotic
varieties----it's like pulling teeth every year just to find Thai
basil or lemon thyme (which, thank goodness, I did find this year!)
I usually find some interesting varieties at the Philadelphia Flower
Show, but can't seem to keep them alive long enough for the weather
to warm up sufficiently for planting. (You should hear the pro and
con arguments I have with myself each year over this!)
Seeds are easier to find, but sometimes I just don't have any luck
starting them, especially for the woodier-stemmed herbs. And, though
I bought 6 varieties of basil seeds this year, and all that rain
kept the seeds evenly moist, somehow (and surprisingly) those
failed, too. So I really could use a good local source of exotic
herb plants, that hit the stores in mid-May.
Oh, and I seem to recall that 'Beano' may actually be derived from a
mold (perhaps Aspergillus niger???) rather than epizote (which I can
get in my local grocery store, next to the cilantro).
Pat M
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Oh, and regarding the mojito, I give it an interesting twist by
using what I have on hand: a stong, bright peppermint (it was
labeled 'black peppermint') with the usual ingredients (except
sometimes using dark rum), plus the addition of fresh ginger. Now
that makes a great summertime drink! Would love to get some of that
'mojito mint' though.
Charlotte Kidd
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Hi TC, well...what IS Maureen's mint-with-a-kick? As for ridding
mint from the garden "completely" - several applications of an
herbicide over a season or two would likely do the job. BUT do you
want that herbicide and its residual in your garden?
My approach is to pull it out, loosen the soil and remove ALL roots
and bits of roots. Tedious, yes. It's less toxic and not completely
effective over time.
A few mint sprouts will likely survive. Those could be sprayed with
an herbicide ... or you could keep pulling out the handful. Ritual
mint removal - every two months or so. Then enjoy a Mojito hour with
the fresh mint you've harvested.
Yum.
Charlotte
Charlotte Kidd
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Hi Pat, Here are some different approaches to finding a wide variety
of herbs. Have you talked with your local nursery plant buyer about
expanding the herb selection? Not a clerk. You want the owner or the
person who buys the plants. Unless they're really busy at the moment
you approach them, I've found they often appreciate suggestions and
will consider finding and buying new plants - if asked. It's to
their benefit to have relationships with customers.
Local Herb societies and clubs are excellent resources. Members love
to talk and grow herbs and swap plants and seeds. They often have
great plant sales. Also The Hardy Plant Society has many members who
start their own plants and network about sources. Of course, the
web's an option. Be sure you're getting good quality for your money
there though.
Enjoy,
Charlotte
Charlotte Kidd
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Thanks, Pat, for your recipe! By the way, what time's cocktail hour?
Charlotte
Pat M
Thanks for the herb sources & tips, Charlotte.....and happy hour's
at ~4:30 on days I'm off from work!