Choice and storage
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| Bay leaf plant. Observe for darkish inexperienced leaves with flower buds. Photograph courtesy: Andy |
Historically, bay leaves are picked and dried slowly below the shade away from direct daylight to retain their unstable important oils.
Within the spice shops, one would possibly come throughout totally different sorts of bay leaf preparations. Utterly dry, and floor (spicy powder) varieties will also be bought in such shops. Purchase from genuine sources and keep away from these with off-smell, spots, or fungus-inflicted leaves.
As soon as at dwelling, retailer bay leaf in an hermetic jar or container and maintain it away from direct mild. Since they lose taste early, laurel leaves shouldn’t be stored for longer than a 12 months.
Dried bay laurel berries are additionally getting used as a flavoring merchandise in dishes.
Culinary makes use of
Shiny, dark-green bay leaves can be utilized contemporary. Nonetheless, they’re at their finest after being allowed to wilt below the shade for few days until their bitterness has gone, however the leaves nonetheless retain their pleasing aroma.
Should you come across bay leaves within the cooked meals, simply maintain them apart earlier than consuming. Apart from being fairly strongly flavored, the laurel leaves are leathery in texture and difficult to chew and swallow.
Listed here are some serving suggestions:
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Bay leaf is likely one of the elements in bouquet garni together with thyme, sage, savory, celery, and basil.
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The spice can be used within the preparation of courtroom bouillon. Court docket bullion is readymade preparation made from water, salt, white wine, vegetable aromatics (onion and celery), and flavored with bouquet garni and black pepper.
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Its dried leaves brewed into an natural tea.
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Fashionable as tej patta, dry laurel leaf at all times discovered a spot within the kitchen spice-box in India. The leaf added to taste fried-rice, biriyani, chutneys, and so forth.
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Bay Laurel can be a necessary ingredient in lots of basic sauces akin to bread sauce, tomato sauce, and béchamel.
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Bay leaves added to taste cuisines akin to seafood, poultry, meat, rice (pulov), and vegetable dishes.
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Bay leaf used to taste candy dishes like sweetbreads, custards, and lotions.
Security profile
Discard Laurel from the meals earlier than serving since they could trigger choking, could reduce tongue and injure digestive tract. Pregnant girls ought to keep away from consuming them in extra because the chemical compounds in them could trigger abortion.
(Medical disclaimer: The knowledge and reference guides on this web site are meant
solely for the final info for the reader. It’s not for use to diagnose well being issues or for therapy functions. It’s not a
substitute for medical care supplied by a licensed and certified well being skilled. Please seek the advice of your well being care supplier for any recommendation
on drugs.)
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Additional studying:
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USDA Nationwide Nutrient Database. (opens in new window).
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Gernot-Katzer’s spice pages. (Opens in new window).