1-2 favourite herb or spice

[shootingstar]

Today I realized that we were low on fresh ginger root. Am always amazed how much ginger root we use. For savoury and dessert dishes.

So I guess a favourite herb or spice for me would be: ginger root and basil.
I love fresh basil. So versatile in many different types of cuisines..Western as well as some Eastern.

He likes fresh parsley alot. So he buys alot of it and uses it. I'm clueless with parsley. I actually can barely taste fresh parsley in alot of dishes. So the joy of fresh parsley is quite lost on me.

[skhill]

I just noticed I'm low on cumin. Again. So that'd have to be my favorite spice, with cinamon a close second. Herbs: basil, absolutely...

But it seems like I need to restock catnip most often (there are 3 little junkies in my house).

[OakLeaf]

I couldn't choose one or two. Yeesh, what season of the year is it? Are the veggies in my garden or my fridge sweet, tart, earthy, pungent, green, ...? Am I cooking Italian, Chinese, Middle Eastern or Indian, or branching out to some other cuisine?

Shootingstar... really? If you isolate it, and take a bite out of freshly harvested Italian parsley, the flavor doesn't seem strong to you, so that you can taste what it adds to risotti, soups, salads, etc.?


ETA: Okay, some people would consider garlic a seasoning, and I guess if I had to pick one flavor that would seriously hamper my repertoire if it was missing, that would be it. But to me, garlic is a vegetable.

[shootingstar]

But it seems like I need to restock catnip most often (there are 3 little junkies in my house).

Cute.

Oakleaf, I should qualify that once I had a tabouleh dish that was made with a ton of Italian parsley..it was so strong that I disliked it. It must have been a cup of fresh parsley in that dish.

But yes, any parsley of normal amounts in any dish, I can't really taste it much at all. I know there are different varieties of parsley. For instance, a sprig of parsely on a dish..doesn't add any taste for me. Even if it's an hors d'oeuvre.

Guess asking a gardener this question, is like eeny-miney-mo, which herb shall it be? Like choosing chocolate bon-bon variety.

In terms of sweet spice, we use interestingly...aniseed. He uses it more than I because of the sorts of dishes he makes. He'll add it to certain salad dressings, some savoury sauces and of course roasting pears, etc. crushed aniseed is very nice. And combined with grated /minced ginger root.

I used to dislike aniseed because it remind me of Old fusty European traditions. But then, I became more familiar with certain quality baked European desserts which made me convert.

[zoom-zoom]

Garlic and ginger are definitely my faves...I LOVE Asian cuisine.

[shootingstar]

ETA: Okay, some people would consider garlic a seasoning, and I guess if I had to pick one flavor that would seriously hamper my repertoire if it was missing, that would be it. But to me, garlic is a vegetable.

Well, true I forgot about garlic..same category as onion. Most definitely it is a 'spice'. I actually didn't start having garlic in home cooked dishes until I left home. My parents actually came from a garlic growing region of China but...they avoided using garlic at home.

I know this sounds abit wierd. But I was told in times of starvation, people ate garlic bulbs. Maybe that was the turn-off, raw garlic. Dunno.

[tangentgirl]

If we are counting garlic, then yes, definitely garlic. Mmmmmm.

I have a little dried mix I like to make up and call the 3 Amigos: thyme, basil and oregano. It goes on almost everything.

[ASammy1]

Most definitely garlic! Mmmm parsley... And rosemary... And oregano... Oh, and I LOVE fresh ground pepper.

[arielmoon]

Garlic and fresh basil. LOVE IT!

[GLC1968]

Just two?

Garlic, most definitely.
Vying for the second spot would be cinnamon, rosemary, basil, oregano & pepper.

[OakLeaf]

Okay, I can break it down.

I don't go a week without using: parsley, black pepper, hot red pepper and garlic (if you consider those latter two seasonings and not vegetables).

I don't go two weeks without using: oregano, sage, thyme, rosemary, cilantro, coriander, cumin.

Life would really stink if I could never again get: foenugreek, fennel, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, paprika, or saffron, even though I don't use them all the time.

Summer wouldn't be summer without basil (Genovese plus one Asian variety, usually). But I almost never use it out of season (including not bothering to grow it in containers).

[nscrbug]

I'm in the camp of not being able to choose just 2. The ones I use on a regular basis are - cinnamon, fresh ground black pepper, oregano, thyme, basil, rosemary, garlic, and my new favorite...crushed red pepper flakes, which is a MUST on my pizza now.

[Owlie]

I can't pick two.
I use garlic (lots of it), black pepper, cumin, fresh ginger, cilantro, cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper on a regular basis.
I don't use cardamom, cloves or cinnamon on a regular basis, but I love the smell and taste of those spices.

[limewave]

Black Pepper
Sea Salt
Garlic
Ginger Root
Tamari
Cinnamon
Fresh Parsley

Can't make it through a week without all of the above. We buy black pepper in bulk from Sams Club.

[tulip]

Basil and garlic (if garlic is a spice). If garlic doesn't count, then I'd have to say basil and rosemary.

But it's very hard to choose just two. Who restricted the list to just two? And why?