The market · Herbs and aromatics · The Middle East, Northern and Central Europe
Mint
Cool, sweet and bright — for salads, sauces, teas and cutting through fat.
cool · sweet
What to do with it
ThaiLarbMinced meat cooked briefly and dressed warm with lime, fish sauce, chilli and toasted ground rice, with shallot, mint and coriander.No one here has made it yet
VietnameseGỏi cuốnRice paper wrapped round prawns, pork, rice noodles, lettuce and herbs, eaten fresh with a dipping sauce.No one here has made it yetVietnameseCao lầuFirm, yellowish noodles with slices of soy-braised pork, crisp squares of fried noodle dough and herbs, in just a spoonful of rich broth.No one here has made it yetVietnameseBánh xèoA thin, crisp pancake of rice flour, coconut milk and turmeric, folded round pork, prawns and bean sprouts, wrapped in leaves and herbs and dipped in nước chấm.No one here has made it yetGoanCafrealChicken marinated in a bright green paste of coriander, green chilli, garlic, ginger, spice and lime or vinegar, then pan-fried until charred at the edges.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianHyderabadi biryaniMarinated goat or chicken layered raw under half-cooked basmati, with saffron, fried onion and mint, then sealed and cooked slowly on dum.No one here has made it yet
LevantineTabboulehA salad of parsley — mostly parsley — with tomato, mint, spring onion and a little bulgur, dressed with lemon and olive oil.No one here has made it yetLevantineFattoushA salad of crisp leaves, tomato, cucumber, radish and herbs with shards of toasted or fried flatbread, in a sharp dressing of lemon and sumac.No one here has made it yet
GeorgianTkemaliA sour plum sauce with garlic, dill, coriander and chilli — Georgia's ketchup, for meat and potatoes.No one here has made it yetGreekGemistaTomatoes and peppers hollowed out, filled with rice, herbs and their own pulp, and baked in olive oil with potatoes.No one here has made it yet
VietnameseGỏi cuốnRice paper wrapped round prawns, pork, rice noodles, lettuce and herbs, eaten fresh with a dipping sauce.No one here has made it yetVietnameseCao lầuFirm, yellowish noodles with slices of soy-braised pork, crisp squares of fried noodle dough and herbs, in just a spoonful of rich broth.No one here has made it yetVietnameseBánh xèoA thin, crisp pancake of rice flour, coconut milk and turmeric, folded round pork, prawns and bean sprouts, wrapped in leaves and herbs and dipped in nước chấm.No one here has made it yetGoanCafrealChicken marinated in a bright green paste of coriander, green chilli, garlic, ginger, spice and lime or vinegar, then pan-fried until charred at the edges.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianHyderabadi biryaniMarinated goat or chicken layered raw under half-cooked basmati, with saffron, fried onion and mint, then sealed and cooked slowly on dum.No one here has made it yetLevantineTabboulehA salad of parsley — mostly parsley — with tomato, mint, spring onion and a little bulgur, dressed with lemon and olive oil.No one here has made it yetLevantineFattoushA salad of crisp leaves, tomato, cucumber, radish and herbs with shards of toasted or fried flatbread, in a sharp dressing of lemon and sumac.No one here has made it yetGeorgianTkemaliA sour plum sauce with garlic, dill, coriander and chilli — Georgia's ketchup, for meat and potatoes.No one here has made it yetGreekGemistaTomatoes and peppers hollowed out, filled with rice, herbs and their own pulp, and baked in olive oil with potatoes.No one here has made it yetKitchens that keep it in
VietnamVietnameseClear broths, fish sauce and a plate of fresh herbs: a cooking of contrasts — hot and cool, soft and crisp — finished by each person at the table.11 classicsLebanon, Syria, Palestine and JordanLevantineThe cooking of the eastern Mediterranean: olive oil, lemon, tahini and herbs, eaten as a spread of small dishes to share.11 classics
