With a mere handful of carefully constructed herb and spice seasoning blends you will be able to create a nearly endless variety of nutritious gourmet meals at will. Dishes that will, without fail, get you compliments galore! What’s more, homemade seasoning blends are sought after gifts and products to make and sell.
As busy cooks we are always looking for easy ways to increase the flavour and interest of our dishes. One of the most overlooked ways of doing this is to use gourmet herb and spice seasoning blends. And who better than the French to show us how to make these blends?
The French approach is one of both simplicity and subtlety. The classic French dish hardly ever uses a single herb for seasoning, but usually combines a bouquet of herbs that add an indefinable quality to a dish, but never dominate it.
These herb and spice seasoning blends are often called a bouquet garni. The French term for a ‘bundle of herbs.’ But they are a lot more than a mere bundle of herbs.
Side Note: For the sake of simplicity we use the term “seasoning” to distinguish culinary herb and spice blends from medicinal herb and spice blends. If you are a culinary purist – please forgive, we hope you’ll look past the semantics.
The aim of a seasoning blend is simple: To produce a balanced, complex flavour that makes your diner want to take another bite, not analyze it. In other words – it’s made for those that love good food.
Different blends are used for meat, fish, sauces, dressings, etc. The success of a herb and spice blend, like any recipe, depends on:
- Selecting herbs and spices that compliment each other.
- Finding the correct proportions for each ingredient.
How do you create successful herb and spice blends?
Simply by studying recipes and watching cooking programs on television. Look for recipes that use more than two herbs, spices or flavourings. These are all blends of herbs and spices that work.
When you study successful recipes and chef’s, take special note of the following aspects:
The ingredients – which ingredients make up the blend. We call them “Flavour Pals” and it gives you an indication of which herbs can be used together.
The proportions – the proportions of the different herbs and spices that make up the blend in relation to each other.
The portion size – this will help you develop a feel for how much herbs and spices to add to a dish, which will help with formulating the quantities of each ingredient in the final blend.
The dish in which the blend is used – this will give you an indication of which herbs and spices go well with which dishes. This gives you an idea of what we call “Matches Made in Heaven“.
When do they add the different seasonings – at the beginning or closer to the end? Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a blend needs to be added all at once.
Don’t fall into the trap of “analysis paralysis” either. Take your notes to the kitchen and put them to the test.
Creating culinary delights is more craft than art…
Meaning that you need to experiment. Meaning that you will make your share of mistakes. Meaning that some of your diners will accuse you of trying to poison them. Just remind them that they are fortunate to get such healthy poison, learn from the mistake(s), and move on.
In my experience, we normally give up at a point just before reaching success. Persevere. It is your key to success.
Here are two good tips. Apart from your “study notes” make short written notes of each “experiment” as well. I emphasize written notes, as my “mental notes” have failed me on numerous occasions. Sometimes it can be as simple as changing one proportion in your blend to get compliments galore.
Next, involve everybody in your “experiments.” Cooking is a sought after social craft, and you will be doing your children a favour if you let them develop this skill with you. In my experience most children have a “natural gift” for producing culinary delights. Why? Simply because they have inquisitive minds and they don’t mind taking risks – they like to be adventurous.
Get More Inspiration From The Classic French Herb and Spice Seasoning Blends
For starters keep your blends simple. The classic French blends – bouquet garni, fines herbs, and herbes de Provence, – are good examples of how to do this.
The original bouquet garni of parsley, thyme and bay is still used to flavour meat based casseroles, stews, stocks and soups. These days rosemary or a twist or orange peel is added as well.
It’s so easy to make. You only need:
3 stalks parsley,
1 sprig thyme and
1 bay leaf
Tie the herbs together in a little bundle with a piece of sting. Add the bouquet garni to any stew, sauce or casserole you’re preparing and remove the bouquet garni before serving. I prefer using fresh herbs but you can use either fresh or dried herbs.
Get a modern twist on the classic bouquet garni recipe…
Take Action
What’s keeping you from developing your full potential in the kitchen? How can you overcome that? What will you do in the next seven days? Share your thoughts in a reply below.
Article by Di-Di Hoffman.
This helped so much to not feel overwhelmed to start using herbs in the kitchen. I feel motivated to start experimenting with this and look forward to making and using a bouquet garni asap
I will make a basic bouquet garni and help my fiance in the kitchen next time he cooks.
I got a new cookbook for Christmas a couple years ago and that was my first introduction to the bouquet garni and other herb combos! Opened up a whole new world and it inspired me to grow my own herb garden that I can harvest from!
I will prepare some “bouquet garni’s and hang them in the kitchen to dry. Wonderful idea.
As I previously mentioned, I was blessed to have a very strong foundation in gardening and cooking from a very early age. I am definitely confident in my abilities in this area.
I don’t cook. When I do I do use herbs and spices, I prefer fresh. I grow the herbs to cook with. Before my husband died in our old house, I had a hanging herb garden in the house on a pillar and remove all the curtains and put up rails for the herbs in colourful pots in in the windows. so we had a lot of herbs on hand, bigger things were in a massive raised bed I built. I do like good food and know what food should taste like in food.
Culinary herbal use is actually an area I’m quite confident and comfortable in. Even a baked potato is made better with rosemary and a little salt.
My major problem is being busy until it time to eat and then not having time to play with additives. Also, finding a yummy recipe late in the day and not having one or two ingredients.
I have been freezing my vegetable offcuts to make a vegetable stock, now I’m going to make a bouquet garni to add to it 🙂
I’m already pretty adventurous in the kitchen. I definitely want to get better at herb combinations and making notes/recipes as I go…my mental notes always get deleted…
I need to implement more fresh herbs in my cooking. I use a lot of dried spices and blends and have made my own as well, but mostly in dried form.
I will try to be more open to the use of variety herbs and spices been afraid to try a few ,I guess I will never know unless I try .Its time to explore .
I’d like to start trying foraged plants in my cooking but I’m still afraid I may be wrong in identification.
I’m definitely going to try experimenting with middle eastern spice blends because I love that type of food and would like successfully pull off a recipe.
I have not been good with mixture of different herbs but am learning and sure will improve with time by the end of this study
I do agree with having children in the kitchen cooking, those are the best memories. I’ve learned over the years to write down a recipe if i change it by adding something new and family and friends enjoy it more. Thank you for the additional building tools for the kitchen with the herbs. I will be definitely trying the Venison Garni.
I am not currently in charge of the cooking in my house but introducing herbs into food will be my aim this week
I have never used a garni before so that is my goal this week
I will invite friends for dinner next week. It’s more fun to cook for more than just the two of us.
I haven’t done my own creations because I’ve been to busy and I’m still learning combos. But I will be working towards if after finishing my course. Which is Ibri the next few days.
Cooking is one of my hobbies, so don’t feel held back by much. However, there is always room to learn more, so I will try to find or figure out one new seasoning blend in the next week.
I’ll start taking note of the proportions of the different herbs that I currently mostly use. Then altering it, before introducing new ingredients.
I plan to use one new seasoning blend a week as I develop the ones I like
I’ll definitely start to experiment with fresh herbs
I always use Thyme, Bay Leaves, Scent Leaves, Garlic, Curry leaves and Ginger Roots. But having learn new Bouquet Garni Recipes and blends, I am starting with Bouquet Garnish cooking Poultry and Vegetables.
Thanks for impacting this knowledge,
I will look at recipes on cooking shows and try one. Or better buy a book on cooking with herbs.
wondering if there would be a market for a pre-prepared fresh herbs bouquet garni or if they are already doing that in bottles?
I will start with the recipe that you have given in the course and than in the following week I will try to put other herbs with it and create my own bouquet garni. Everything while taking notes of course!
I will experiment and keep the note, and that will be a good way to create my choice of a bouquet garni.
I will invite new herbs into old recipes.
I am using your bouquet garni recipes since October 2007 when I attended the Master Cooking With Herbs workshop. Still have the Notes with the recipes you gave us. It turns our everyday meals into something amazing and I love cooking with herbs
I love cooking with garlic, ginger and lemon, but am very curious to try some new blends.
I have already combine my own herb blends, and everybody who tasted it loved it. Thank you for the inspiration to make more blends.
In the next 7 days I endeavor to try something new, a new combination. Nothing is holding me back.
The next seven days I am going to experiment with herbs in my cooking, come what may with caution at first just till I get the hang of it.
it was not knowing how to make my foods extra special, since i know this blends in herbs I am excited
By keep on trying until i get it right
making my own herbs at least 2
Nothing is keeping me from trying new recipes and I love experimenting in the kitchen. I want to plant more herbs and as soon as lock down is over I will go out to buy more seeds.
Try more as they turn our everyday recipes into amazing dishes.
I will use oregano,parsley and lemon thyme in a poultry dish. It looks very interesting
My husband enjoys cooking, so i rarely get to practice lol! But I do enjoy the process when i get a chance! Thus far my favorite blend I’ve come up with is garlic, ginger, and lemon.
I am going to put together 3 complimenting herbs and use them in my cooking.
well need to get some more fresh herbs – I like making stews and casseroles and definitely sowing some parsley – one herb I underestimated
I’m always experimenting in the kitchen and I have a bad habit of making dishes off the top of my head and then not remembering all i
I put in when it turns out to be a great dish. I think I will get myself into a habit of writing everything down.
I’m very experimental in the kitchen, the only thing i need to do i write things down.
I love to create new flavors. I will be doing a lot more spice/herb blending for meals!
There is so much potential. I have been pondering on this for sometime. This coming week I will start to make my own blends.
I have already combine my own herb blends, and everybody who tasted it loved it. Thank you for the inspiration to make more blends.
In the next seven days, I plan to create a list of plants and seeds that I need to go out and buy. I already have a location to plant everything. I just need to get everything and plant it and start the process. Until I have my own herbs growing I can buy fresh herbs from the produce market.
i already have a few herb plants 9 in total and now i can use these 3 together going to try if for tomorrows dinner
What’s keeping you from developing your full potential in the kitchen?
Nothing really, looking forward to more adventures in food preparations.
How can you overcome that?
Make a shopping list for plants and seeds.
What will you do in the next seven days?
Turn our everyday recipes into something amazing.