Currabinny Cooks: Our favourite recipes with dill, which doesn't deserve its bad reputation
Dill has a particular affinity to smoked or cured fish. Picture: Bríd O'Donovan.
Dill has a bit of a bad reputation. Lacking the romance of basil or the sophistication of rosemary, this sweet, pungent herb will be familiar to anyone who’s eaten a pickle, or maybe tried gravlax. In Western Europe, its usage largely stops about there. You only have to venture into the Slavic or Scandinavian world to witness dill in all its glory, taking its role as the stalwart herb of Eastern and Northern Europe very seriously.
With its feathery leaves and bright yellow, umbel shaped flowers floating above the other crops, dill is great for adding visual interest to the herb garden. We grow ours in two large pots where it thrives, provided we water it every few days to keep it moist. Other than that it is an incredibly easy crop to grow and maintain. Dill does best from direct sowing as its roots do not like to be disturbed. Dill was traditionally grown as a medicinal herb, used as a remedy for coughs, headaches and as medicine for stomach problems. Dill is more often used in the kitchen these days, however: the seeds, leaves, and even the pretty flowers are edible. Dill is also a doubly beneficial plant to grow in the garden or vegetable plot as its umbelliferous flowers attract bees and other wildlife. Dill has a flavour somewhere between celery and parsley with the peppery undertones of anise and the feint aroma of lemon bringing a lingering warmth to a dish. Dill is best paired with starch like potatoes, grains, lemons, onions, beetroots and of course in pickles.
