Ideas for Increasing Use of your Herbs & Spices

In an earlier post I talked about how you could reach the target of 30 different plants a week and 150-200 different plants in a month. It is easy if you include lots of herbs and spices in your meals, but I found that I had to make it a habit and to make it as easy as possible to do.

For me, that meant getting the herbs and spices in reach, where I would see them and pre-making tasty blends that I could easily throw into my cooking or sprinkle over my meals.

I have always had a pretty good herb and spice collection, and it was neatly organised and labelled in my pantry so that I could easily find things when I needed them. But they were hidden in the pantry and I only really thought about them when I was following a recipe. I bought some ready-made blends but mostly forgot that they were there except where I had a habit like always adding ‘Tuscan blend’ to my roast vegetables.

I also grow lots of herbs in my garden, and grow many of them in pots that I can see from my dining table, with the intention that I would see them and use them. But generally once I’ve sat down at the table, it is too late – I can’t be bothered getting up and going out to pick the herbs. I just think to myself that I must remember to use them next time.

Getting the herbs and spices in reach, where you can see them

I have now invested in a new spice rack that is on the wall right next to where I do most of my meal preparation and that I have to walk past before I get to the table. Ideally herbs are best stored in a dark place to maintain their freshness longer but they are of no benefit to you at all unless you are actually using them. Mine are out of direct sunlight and will hopefully continue to be used regularly and while they are fresh so it won’t be an issue.

If you are lucky enough to have a pantry where you can have them all displayed on a wall or on the door, then this could work well too. Or a large pull-out drawer under your bench where all the jars are laid out in front of you. I didn’t have these options.

An alternative might be to make herb and spice blends (see below) and have them where you will see them but keep the main stocks in your dark cupboard or drawer.

Herbs and spices keep much longer when they are whole rather than ground. Whether you are buying or growing them and drying them, keep them whole as long as possible. Use a spice grinder when you need them (or grind just a small amount to use later).

Pre-make herb and spice blends for easy use

You can of course just buy herb and spice blends, but on my journey to gut health I became much more aware of how much salt and sugar are included in many of them. If you make your own you have much more control over what you are ingesting and can avoid things like onion or garlic if they happen to be problematic for you, and adjust heat and spiciness to your own preferences.

I have really enjoyed researching traditional spice blends from different cuisines and regions (and will share some of these in later posts). Depending on how much you cook, you could for example make up 7 different blends and have a different cuisine every night of the week. Or you could make one or two and see how many different recipes you can make using them – and then try a couple of new blends.

Make herbal sprinkles to add to any meal

Herbal sprinkles are a great way to add goodness and flavour to any meal: sprinkle them over your soup or salad or stews or whatever you are eating. Get in the habit of adding these to all your meals. These can include other plants beyond what you would normally consider to be herbs and spices, such as seaweed, mushrooms, and sesame seeds.

A classic antioxidant sprinkle comes from Rosemary Gladstar’s book Medicinal Herbs, A Beginners Guide: equal parts toasted sesame seeds, dulse seaweed flakes,  parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.

You can do sweeter versions that  you can add to your cereal or porridge or yoghurt or bowl of fruit. These might include hawthorn or goji berries and coconut along with ginger, cardamom and cinnamon, for example.

I will share some of my favourite sprinkle blends in future posts.