The market · Herbs and aromatics · Southern Europe, West Africa
Thyme
A small woody herb that holds up to long cooking — one of the few that's good dried.
woody · warm · earthy
What to do with it
ProvençalRatatouilleAubergine, courgette, peppers, onion and tomato stewed slowly in olive oil with garlic and herbs.No one here has made it yetProvençalPissaladièreA thick bread dough spread with onions cooked slowly to a sweet mass, criss-crossed with anchovies and dotted with black olives.No one here has made it yetProvençalDaube provençaleBeef marinated in red wine with garlic, herbs and orange peel, then braised for hours in a pot-bellied daubière until it gives to a spoon.No one here has made it yetAlsatianBaeckeoffePork, lamb and beef marinated overnight in white wine, layered with potatoes and onions in an earthenware dish sealed with dough, and baked for hours.No one here has made it yetNormanTripes à la mode de CaenBeef tripe and ox foot cooked for many hours in cider and Calvados with onions, carrots and leeks, in a sealed earthenware pot.No one here has made it yetBurgundianBœuf bourguignonBeef braised slowly in red Burgundy with bacon, small onions and mushrooms until it falls apart.No one here has made it yetBurgundianCoq au vinA cockerel or chicken braised in red wine with bacon, mushrooms and small onions, the sauce thickened with its own juices.No one here has made it yetBurgundianŒufs en meuretteEggs poached in red wine and served in its sauce, reduced with shallots and bacon, on fried bread.No one here has made it yetGascon and the South-WestConfit de canardDuck legs salted overnight, cooked slowly in their own fat until tender, then fried crisp to serve.No one here has made it yetBretonCotriadeThe Breton fishermen's stew: several kinds of fish simmered with potatoes and onions, the broth poured over bread and the fish eaten after with vinaigrette.No one here has made it yetJamaicanJerk chickenChicken steeped in a hot, fragrant paste of scotch bonnet, allspice, spring onion and thyme, then smoked slowly over pimento wood.No one here has made it yetJamaicanAckee and saltfishSoft, buttery ackee fruit sautéed with flaked salt cod, onion, tomato, peppers and scotch bonnet — Jamaica's national dish.No one here has made it yetJamaicanCurry goatGoat on the bone, seasoned overnight and stewed slowly with Jamaican curry powder, allspice, thyme and scotch bonnet.No one here has made it yetJamaicanRice and peasRice cooked with kidney beans in coconut milk, with thyme, spring onion, allspice and a whole scotch bonnet.No one here has made it yetJamaicanJamaican beef pattyA half-moon of flaky, turmeric-yellow pastry filled with spiced, peppery minced beef.No one here has made it yetJamaicanJamaican pepper shrimpFreshwater shrimp boiled in their shells with scotch bonnet, garlic and allspice until red and fiercely hot.No one here has made it yetJamaicanRundownSalted or fresh mackerel simmered in coconut milk cooked down until it thickens, with tomato, onion, thyme and scotch bonnet.No one here has made it yetKinds
- Common thyme
- The all-rounder for stews, roasts and stocks.
- Lemon thyme
- Citrus-scented; better raw or barely cooked.
- Dried
- The thyme in Nigerian stews and jollof, with curry powder.
Goes with
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Anywhere; dried from African and Caribbean grocers in bigger, cheaper bags.
- Worth knowing
- Strip the leaves by running your fingers down the stem, against the way they grow.
Kitchens that keep it in
Nigeria, West AfricaNigerianBig flavours from a big country: tomato and pepper bases, smoke, groundnut and the scotch bonnet — and party food at a scale all of its own.11 classics · 2 cooked hereCastile and Madrid — the high central plateau of Spain, the mesetaCastilian and MadridThe kitchen of the high, dry meseta: suckling pig and lamb roasted in wood-fired ovens, chickpeas and garlic soups for hard winters, and a capital that eats out, late and standing up.10 classicsProvence — south-eastern France, from the Rhône to NiceProvençalOlive oil, garlic and the herbs of the dry hills, with tomatoes, fish from the Mediterranean and sauces pounded in a mortar.10 classicsBurgundy — east-central France, from Chablis down to the MâconnaisBurgundianRed wine in the pot as much as the glass, with Charolais beef, bacon, mushrooms, snails, mustard and the cheeses and hams of the hills.7 classicsJamaica — the Greater Antilles, in the western Caribbean south of CubaJamaicanScotch bonnet heat and allspice warmth, meat smoked slowly over pimento wood, and coconut, thyme and spring onion in nearly everything.10 classics
