Currabinny Cooks: Three recipes for 'controversial' coriander, the love/hate herb

We still hold out hope for those of you who simply cannot stand coriander.

Coriander is perhaps the most controversial of all the herbs. People's dislike of coriander is well known and seemingly very common. Coriander haters find the taste overwhelmingly soapy and pungent and that is because most of the cilantro taste and aroma is formed from natural compounds in the leaves called aldehydes, which are also produced during the making of soap.

Factors such as habituation, taste memory and association (possibly) also play a role in the love or hate relationship with coriander. If you often eat or smell coriander, you will become familiar with it and there is a higher chance that you will like it. The environment also plays a role in this. If everyone likes it in your environment, you may take this over sooner. So genetic predispositions aside, we still hold out hope for those of you who simply cannot stand coriander.

We both love cilantro for its bright, peppery, pungent, almost citrusy taste, but also because it’s so versatile, right at home in Mexican, Latin American, Southeast Asian, Indian, Middle Eastern and North African dishes.

Coriander is one of the easiest herbs to grow, both on the windowsill and outside. Cilantro is a fast-growing but short-lived plant that is ready to harvest in just three or four weeks, so you can start planting it in the early spring, just after the last expected frost. You may also want to replant in early Autumn for an Autumn harvest. The main problem, is picking the leaves before they start to flower, at which point it becomes useless as a culinary herb. Like a lot of our herbs that we grow in Currabinny, we use big ceramic pots. This is particularly uselful for coriander as it is with intense sunshine that the plant will flower. When there is a particularly dry, hot spell, we can simply move the coriander either to a cooler, shadier location or bring it inside altogether. If it does indeed go to flower, don’t despair too much, the flowers attract a whole host of beneficial insects to your garden and the resulting seeds can be dried out and used as a spice.

Plums with Coriander & Goats Cheese

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

This is a gorgeous end of summer, simple salad to have either for the table or lunchbox. It is bursting with fresh flavours, the coriander and plum complimenting each other perfectly. We used our favourite ‘Cnoc Dubh’ from the Galway Goat Farm in Gurteen,

Servings

2

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 10 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 4 ripe plums, stoned and cut into wedges

• A good handful or two of baby spinach leaves, washed

• 6 small radishes, very finely sliced

• 150g soft goats cheese

• Handful of fresh coriander leaves

• 2 tablespoons of sherry vinegar

• 1 tablespoon of honey extra virgin olive oil

• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, toss the spinach, plums and radish together. Tip the ingredients out onto a serving bowl or platter.

2. Whisk together the sherry vinegar and honey with a small pinch of salt until the honey has loosened. drizzle this over the plums, spinach and radish.

3. Crumble over the goats cheese along with a few drizzles of good extra virgin olive oil and lastly garnish generously with loads of lovely fresh coriander leaves. Eat immediately.

There seems to be an over reliance on the regular and safe when it comes to sauces, jams, chutneys and dips. I find myself rarely stepping too far out of my comfort zone when it comes to whipping up a hummus, pesto, chilli jam or apple chutney. I think there is definitely a tried and tested element to these essential accompaniments whereby simplicity and reliability is key but sometimes we do need to push the boat out. 

Coriander, Lemon and Olive Tapenade

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

This recipe falls somewhere in between being a tapenade and herb jam, although its flavour profile is addictively bright, complex and intense.

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 4 cloves of garlic, crushed

• 2 large handfuls of baby spinach leaves (around 450g)

• 1 large handful of coriander leaves, stems discarded

• Smaller bunch of parsley, leaves only

• 10-12 pitted kalamata olives

• Juice of 1 lemon

• Pinch of sea salt

• Pinch of ground cumin

• 1 heaped teaspoon of smoked paprika

• 60mls of extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Cook the spinach with a splash of water in a small pot over a medium high heat until wilted and dark green. Remove from the pan, squeezing out as many juices as you can. Place the wilted spinach in between two clean tea towels and press until you get it as dry as possible.

2. Place on a chopping board along with the coriander and parlsey leaves and finely chop it all together.

3. In a small frying pan over a medium high heat, heat a tablespoon of olive oil and then add the garlic, olives, paprika and cumin, cooking for around 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the chopped greens to the pan and cook everything for around 10 minutes.

4. Remove from the heat and place the ingredients in a shallow bowl to cool. Mash in the rest of the olive oil and lemon juice and season with a pinch of sea salt to taste. Place in a serving bowl or in a clean jar. Keep refrigerated until you need to use it.

My local butchers in Dublin prepares his rump steak in the Brazilian ‘Picanha’ style. Picanha is a cut of beef taken from the top of the rump, It is triangular in shape and surrounded by a thick layer of fat called a fat cap. Because it is not an overused muscle, this cut remains beautifully tender and juicy, producing an amazing flavour when cooked. It is much more convenient to buy fried shallots than go about preparing yourself, there is really good quality examples in Asian food markets.

Easy Vietnamese Beef Salad with Coriander

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

This recipe has a good amount of ingredients but is actually very quick and easy to pull together. Marinate the beef ahead of time for best results.

Preparation Time

 40 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 55 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 500g of Rump Steak, cut into strips

• 100g rice noodles

• 200g baby gem lettuce, chopped

• 1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin matchsticks

• 1 cucumber, deseeded and cut into batons

• Large handful of coriander leaves

• 3 tablespoons of fried shallots

• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced

• For the marinade:

• 1 stick of lemongrass, bashed and chopped

• 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

• 1 teaspoon of fish sauce

• 1 teaspoon of soy sauce

• 1 teaspoon of sesame oil

• 1 tablespoon of groundnut or peanut oil

• 1 tablespoon of soft brown sugar

• For the dressing:

• 2 tablespoons of palm sugar

• 1 tablespoon of fish sauce

• 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar

• Juice of two limes

• 1 small red chilli, deseeded and very finely chopped

• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed

Method

1. Place all the ingredients for the marinade in a food blender and blitz. Place in a bag with the beef strips, making sure everything is well coated. Place in the fridge for a minimum of 40 minutes.

2. Make the dressing by whisking together all the ingredients in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved.

3. Cook the noodles as per packet instructions, drain and rinse under cold water. Place the noodles in a large serving platter. Toss together the lettuce, carrot, chilli and cucumber and place on top of the noodles.

4. Heat a little oil in a wok and cook the marinated beef strips over a medium high heat for around 3 minutes. Remove from the pan and place on top of the salad. Drizzle the dressing over everything generously and top with loads of fresh coriander and your fried shallots.

5. Serve warm.