Parsley: The All-Around Cooking Herb

Parsley is often used to garnish a dish before the dish is served. It is often applauded for its pleasant look that serves as a final touch to tastefully decorate a dish. However, parsley was firstly added to the dish to freshen one’s breath after eating—which is why it is served fresh. Although parsley is mainly known for its decorative purposes, there are indeed many ways of cooking with parsley, since parsley should be recognized for its uses to improve the taste of the different dishes.

Although the herb has over forty varieties, but only two breeds are used for cooking with parsley. One breed is the curly-leafed parsley, which is mainly used for decorating, and the other Italian parsley, which is used for cooking because of its superior flavor.

In Middle Eastern cuisine cooking with parsley is known to become center stage. Here, the taste of parsley is very much used and appreciated. Cooking with parsley in Middle Eastern cuisine usually involves mixing it to make tabbouleh, a salad with vegetables, seasonings, bulgur and parsley. Vegetables in the tabbouleh dish often consist of tomatoes and cucumber, and seasonings include garlic, onions, Feta Cheese, black pepper and salt. The sauce is comprised of oil and seasonings, and the main ingredient, the bulgur, is mixed with parsley along with the sauce and sprinkled with Feta cheese. Aside from that, parsley is also used on soup, sauces and ground meat not only to garnish the food but to enhance the taste as well.

Parsley can be also a main ingredient in some recipes. Deep-fried parsley is used in French cuisine as an accompaniment to grilled meats, and parsleys are also main ingredients in soup flavors. Parsley is often a topping in lamb and ham pate, and is often accompanied with breadcrumbs. Cooking with parsley means enhancing the flavors of the dishes and garnishing the meat to provide the delectable, fresh-from-the-oven look.

Before cooking with parsley, make sure that you buy leaves that are bright green and uniform in color, with little or no traces of blemishes or wilting. The best storage method is to sprinkle the water with leaves, wrap them loosely in a cloth and store them in the refrigerator.

Cooking with parsley is a favorable idea because not only does it make your dishes look delectable, it makes your dishes taste delectable too. So the next time you prepare the ingredients in your dinner menu, parsley should certainly be on the kitchen table!