CHERVIL
Chervil, otherwise known as "cicily", "sweet cicily" and sometimes "gourmet's parsley", it has a mild flavor with a slight aniseed taste. It's not as common or well known as some of the other more popular herbs such as parsley, sage or oregano, yet it is just as flavorful and delicious when used in your everyday cooking.
Though native to Eastern Europe and Western Asia, Chervil has been around for about the last 2000 years. It was introduced to Europe by the Romans and was used by the ancient Greeks as a rejuvenating tonic.
Along with parsley, chives and tarragon, It is immensely popular in French cuisine being one of the main components of the French herb blend "Fines Herbes".
Chervil is a member of the parsley family and is actually very similar in appearance to Parsley and is used in a similar way to parsley and blends well with chicken, fish and egg dishes but much of the delicate flavor of chervil is lost when cooked or heated to a high temperature, so it is best to add chopped chervil at the end of cooking time or when serving the meal.
Because Chervil is not a particularly overpowering herb, it can be consumed in larger quantities than some of the stronger flavored herbs. Consequently, as larger quantities are consumed, the nutritional value will be greater and you can really benefit from the vitamin and mineral intake. Chervil is rich in a number of different vitamins and minerals. It is an excellent source of Vitamins A and C, as well as calcium, iron, manganese, potassium and zinc. Chervil also contains smaller but significant amounts of a number of the B vitamins, magnesium, selenium, copper and phosphorous.
Store (washed, and dried) fresh Chervil wrapped in paper towels in a plastic bag for up to a week.
Though native to Eastern Europe and Western Asia, Chervil has been around for about the last 2000 years. It was introduced to Europe by the Romans and was used by the ancient Greeks as a rejuvenating tonic.
Along with parsley, chives and tarragon, It is immensely popular in French cuisine being one of the main components of the French herb blend "Fines Herbes".
Chervil is a member of the parsley family and is actually very similar in appearance to Parsley and is used in a similar way to parsley and blends well with chicken, fish and egg dishes but much of the delicate flavor of chervil is lost when cooked or heated to a high temperature, so it is best to add chopped chervil at the end of cooking time or when serving the meal.
Because Chervil is not a particularly overpowering herb, it can be consumed in larger quantities than some of the stronger flavored herbs. Consequently, as larger quantities are consumed, the nutritional value will be greater and you can really benefit from the vitamin and mineral intake. Chervil is rich in a number of different vitamins and minerals. It is an excellent source of Vitamins A and C, as well as calcium, iron, manganese, potassium and zinc. Chervil also contains smaller but significant amounts of a number of the B vitamins, magnesium, selenium, copper and phosphorous.
Store (washed, and dried) fresh Chervil wrapped in paper towels in a plastic bag for up to a week.