Hate to say it, but those folks have no idea what they're talking about. I
use it like crazy. It has a little more peppery taste than Sweet Basil, but
is absolutely perfect for steamed veggies, Italian cooking, meatloaf, etc.
It's also nowhere near as cold-sensitive as Sweet Basil, and is much more
heat-tolerant. I've been growing it for ten years or better.

--
Elizabeth of the Tudor Tarts
http://www.tudortarts.com/


"Michelle Fulton" wrote in message
. com...

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...
What does this basil taste like compared to regular italian (sweet)
basil?

I was surfing for info on basil and came across this site that says
African
Blue Basil is not usually used for cooking.
http://chefsgarden.com/basilafrican.htm

M

Michelle Fulton wrote:
Thanks for the info, Steve, but you call it African Blue Basil in your post,
and on the website I believe it said Thai basil. Would you please confirm?

According to this: http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com...anscharium.htm
that's what african blue basil looks like. Thai basil is purple and edible.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Other sites referring to African Blue -
http://www.romwell.com/cookbook/Herb...nbluebasil.htm
http://www.petesherbs.com/basil.htm#African%20Blue
http://www.sycamorefarms.com/ExperimentPesto.html
http://www.quietcreekherbfarm.com/basil.htm

--
Elizabeth of the Tudor Tarts
http://www.tudortarts.com/


"Michelle Fulton" wrote in message
. com...

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...
What does this basil taste like compared to regular italian (sweet)
basil?

I was surfing for info on basil and came across this site that says
African
Blue Basil is not usually used for cooking.
http://chefsgarden.com/basilafrican.htm

M

The first three seem to imply that the african blue basil is too strong
to use by itself or as a substitute for italian basil.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

I guess it's just a matter of taste. I prefer it over Sweet Basil.

--
Elizabeth of the Tudor Tarts
http://www.tudortarts.com/


"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...
The first three seem to imply that the african blue basil is too strong
to use by itself or as a substitute for italian basil.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Howdy folks,
The basils are haunting me.
I will double check with the gardener, whether we are talking Thai
Basil or African Blue. I let him edit the article but we could have
missed that. The head chef in our household uses the milder 'sweet'
Basil's to use raw in salads and anything else she can hide raw Basil
in, but likes the stronger,more pungent Basils like Spicy Globe and
the purpleflowering types for cooking because they hold their flavor
when cooked.

I'm sure someone will beat me to this but Thai basil in Thailand is
called 'Hora-pa'' but be careful not to confuse it, as often happens
with 'Gra-pow' according to www.learnthaicooking.com. So I'll be
especially careful in that regards. Close inspection will reveal tiny
hairs on the stem that distinuqishes it as "Gra-pow" as opposed to
hairless 'Hora-pa"
Now that I'm clear on that, I checked the sites on African Blue Basil
and the best description I found of it, was on :
http://www.sycamorefarms.com/2001BountifulBasil.html
which described opinions of it's taste as ranging from turpentine to
'strong'
If anyone out there knows the history of the plant travels, where it
was native, when it was introduced I would love to hear it. I always
enjoy thatst stuff.
There seems to be an inedible ( not poisonious just bad tasting )
Basil called 'Camphor Basil" which I guess explains why I've never
seen it for sale.

What I've noticed is how often sone 'Sweet Basils" end up tasting like
licorice. I've even noticed sometimes batches of sweet Basil pick up
that taste which I don't know is the result of cross pollination of
the breeding line, or a reaction within the plant to environmental
stresses.

Speaking of Basil's for a couple of winters here in Austin, I used
those "Water Walls" that are marketed for tomatoes but useless since
they are so small to keep Basil growing in a ten gallon pot outside
all winter long. During ther periodic freezes I placed a dish on the
top opening for added protection, and they survived temps into the
upper twenties.

take care,
Steve Coyle

Steve Coyle wrote:
I will double check with the gardener, whether we are talking Thai
Basil or African Blue. I let him edit the article but we could have

It should be easy to tell. Thai basil is actually purple and it has white
flowers, African Blue is described as having mostly green foliage and purple
flowers.

I planted one thai basil plant this year, but something ate the whole thing
overnight. They left the italian basil though.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

'Siam Queen' is another nice ornamental basil. I don't know it's culinary
value, or the intensity of essential oil, but it's a beautiful plant.

On 21 May 2003 11:24:41 -0700, (Steve Coyle) wrote:

Howdy folks,
A neighbor of mine planted African Blue Basil in a mass planting
around an ornamental tree in a five foot diameter circle last year.
Aside from cooking with it, it was great to look at with dark leaves
and purple flowerheads. It had no problems with the heat and produced
far more than he could use for pesto. It also didn't get that black
stem rot that I always have a problem with on the standard sweet
basil.
I took some photos of his garden for my web site, so if anyone
wants to look they can go to my article index and find ( 'The garden
across the street' ) and the photo shows the tree ring planting, with
the flowers up above his sitting bench in bloom.
In our household I have to keep a steady supply of Basil for my
wife who loves the stuff which is difficult since I can't stand the
taste and am always picking leaves out of my salad. It's a trade off
though, because if I lived alone and had to cook for myself, I would
probably spend my life growing nothing but Kentucky Wonder and Blue
Lake Beans and living off my favorite recipe of Green beans,
Cambell's mushroom soup, and canned crunchy onion rings. So I guess
she keeps my gardening radar up in good order.

take care,
Steve Coyle
www.austingardencenter.com

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...
It should be easy to tell. Thai basil is actually purple and it has white
flowers, African Blue is described as having mostly green foliage and
purple
flowers.

I planted one thai basil plant this year, but something ate the whole
thing
overnight. They left the italian basil though.



Affirmative. African Blue has a predominately green leaf with purple-ish
veins. They are also a little fuzzy and not at all smooth like any of the
other basils. The flowers are a light lavender color. Very pretty plant.
--
Elizabeth of the Tudor Tarts
http://www.tudortarts.com/

Howdy folks,
I checked with my neighbor and he did plant last year, African
Blue Basil in the tree ring. I took the pictures of that garden in
August because I was looking for a garden in Austin that looked good
at the hottest time of the year ( and in my neighborhood, "North of
Hyde Park", as we like to say ,there weren't many. )
He said he did cook with the African Blue Basil but it is very
strong, and I'm guessing an aquired taste, so I wouldn't expect to use
it as a substitute for Sweet Basil and expect the same flavor in a
recipe. I did see one cooking website that suggested cooking the
stronger basils with Italian flat leaf Parsley to soften the flavor.

" ( ?! ) " as we say in Chess.

Steve Coyle
www,austingardencenter.com

"Steve Coyle" wrote in message
om...
Howdy folks,
I checked with my neighbor and he did plant last year, African
Blue Basil in the tree ring. I took the pictures of that garden in
August because I was looking for a garden in Austin that looked good
at the hottest time of the year ( and in my neighborhood, "North of
Hyde Park", as we like to say ,there weren't many. )
He said he did cook with the African Blue Basil but it is very
strong, and I'm guessing an aquired taste, so I wouldn't expect to use
it as a substitute for Sweet Basil and expect the same flavor in a
recipe. I did see one cooking website that suggested cooking the
stronger basils with Italian flat leaf Parsley to soften the flavor.

Thanks for the clarification, Steve :-)

M

I love the African basil as do the bees on the flowers. I use it in
roasts and stews with other "leaves" as my son calls them. Most recently,
I made a chicken with a top from the African basil, a bay leaf from my
bay tree, a handful oregano (sweet marjoram), a top of my sage, and a
handful of lemon grass leaves.

Wad it all up and stuff the chicken cavity with some chopped garlic and
all those leaves I mentioned, and wowee... the teenagers came in and
said, "What is that you are cooking?!"

I would probably never try to do pesto with African basil as it IS strong
like that fuzzy Greek oregano. I also like the holy basil and the thai
basil and use those in Pho dishes with beef broth and noodles.

My son used to hate the "leaves" I put in everything, but now he loves
cooking and will not eat anything without some "leaves" in it. Cooking is
his favorite class in school, and who knows maybe CIA?

African basil and Thanksgiving day turkey sage make a nice combo planting
with their flowers and lots of bees come to drink the nectar.

Best to All -- Gae

Steve Coyle wrote:

Howdy folks,
I checked with my neighbor and he did plant last year, African
Blue Basil in the tree ring. I took the pictures of that garden in
August because I was looking for a garden in Austin that looked good
at the hottest time of the year ( and in my neighborhood, "North of
Hyde Park", as we like to say ,there weren't many. )
He said he did cook with the African Blue Basil but it is very
strong, and I'm guessing an aquired taste, so I wouldn't expect to use
it as a substitute for Sweet Basil and expect the same flavor in a
recipe. I did see one cooking website that suggested cooking the
stronger basils with Italian flat leaf Parsley to soften the flavor.

" ( ?! ) " as we say in Chess.

Steve Coyle
www,austingardencenter.com

G a e X a v i e r wrote:

I would probably never try to do pesto with African basil as it IS strong
like that fuzzy Greek oregano. I also like the holy basil and the thai
basil and use those in Pho dishes with beef broth and noodles.

Sorry, people. I misspoke. I meant to say "Cuban" oregano, not "Greek"
oregano.

I am sure everyone on this group knows the typical oregano (origanum
majorana) is also known as sweet marjoram is an excellent antioxidant tea
and is easily grown in droughtful areas but is NOT very hardy. But I think
mine has managed to survive our momentary freezes.

The "hardy sweet marjoram or oregano" Origanum x majoricum, is known for its
sweet savory mint flavor and is great with vegetables, salads, mushrooms and
fish.

"Cuban" (the powerful smelling, fuzzy, fleshy one) is ok with beans or fish
because it is so pungent. To me it is similar to African basil in flavor
power.

The "Greek" oregano has a creosote-like odor and is common in Italian food
and pizza.

Here is a good resource for info and has some interesting herb and Texas
garden info:

http://www.hortmag.com/articles/

Best -- Gae

Steve Coyle wrote:

Howdy folks,
I checked with my neighbor and he did plant last year, African
Blue Basil in the tree ring. I took the pictures of that garden in
August because I was looking for a garden in Austin that looked good
at the hottest time of the year ( and in my neighborhood, "North of
Hyde Park", as we like to say ,there weren't many. )
He said he did cook with the African Blue Basil but it is very
strong, and I'm guessing an aquired taste, so I wouldn't expect to use
it as a substitute for Sweet Basil and expect the same flavor in a
recipe. I did see one cooking website that suggested cooking the
stronger basils with Italian flat leaf Parsley to soften the flavor.

" ( ?! ) " as we say in Chess.

Steve Coyle
www,austingardencenter.com