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Sunday, February 3, 2008

The Wonders Of Garlic and Aromatic Herbs

I love garlic and aromatic herbs such as Kaduk Leaf (daun kaduk) , Screwpine Leaf (daun pandan) , Curry Leaf ( daun kari ) , Mint Leaf ( daun pudina ) , Double Lime Leaf ( daun limau perut) and many many more but those herbs listed above are my favourite ones and which I have them planted in my little paradise . Thank God, our Mighty Creator, did not leave out these wonderful aromatic herbs when he make the Garden of Eden. (",) Making our food more flavorsome.



I uses a lot of garlic in my cooking. Garlic is a part of the allium genus and is related to the onion. It is best known as a cooking ingredient used for its wonderful taste. It would be better to say "tastes" plural since it can take on a completely different taste depending on how it's cooked - everything from a subtle sweet flavour to a strong almost overpowering one.

My family loves to have raw garlic/chilli padi mixed with soy sauce as dip to go with meat and fish dishes. It is a must have, if we are eating 'mee suah' with any form of soup. And I understand garlic eaten raw is good for health. It has antibiotics properties and have been confirmed by modern science. I can visualize the aromatic fragrance of the garlic even as I am typing out this post..haha I can't leave garlic out in any of my dishes. And I just found out that ancient Greek uses garlic to combat vampire.....



Mint leaf ( Mentha Rotundifolia) known locally as daun pudina is oval shaped and has wrinkled appearance. It has a pleasant nice smell. Very refreshing and it is one my favourite herbs. Easy to grow too. I uses it in my soup, omelette and sometimes in my cuppa of tea. Very aromatic and good for health.





Kaduk leaf known locally as daun kaduk is a local aromatic herb used in making nyonya dishes like ' Perut Ikan' , ' Otak-Otak and ' Nasi Ulam' . We love these mouth watering dishes and I cook them quick often.






Screwpine leaf known locally as daun pandan. Extracted for its essence and and is used in cake making and Asian sweet desserts . It is easy to grow and they grow fast. My screwpine plant is fast growing into a bush already. I use it as a decorative plant...helps to landscape part of my small garden...haha helps to cover up some flaws in the garden too.


Curry leaf (Murraya koenigii) - Curry leaves are important to Asian food as bay leaves are to European food. I am lucky to have a plant in my small little garden. It is very convenient for me as I cook curry very often. Why the hassle of going to wet market just to purchase a small sprigs of curry leaves when one can just pluck them from one very own garden. The spicy fragrance adds flavor to meat dishes too.


Double Lime Leaf is known locally as ' daun limau perut '. I use it to cook 'Beef/Chicken Rendang', 'Tom Yam' and 'Perut Ikan'. Has a pleasant lime fragrance. A must have in my garden. See the shape of the leaf...it is beautiful....again God is a great designer. (",)

Am wondering why I am blogging about these aromatic herbs.... maybe I love nature or maybe inspiration came when I was cleaning and clearing up my garden this morning. (",)
I found out that my chilli padi plants are not flowering and my lemongrass are not producing either...thin and drying..haha so I pulled them out and will replant them at a later date. From now on , I will add more herbal plants to my little garden. Save time and money...hahaha .Pray that God will endow gardening talent unto me.

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