Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with basil

How can I stop whatever is chewing my basil plants?

teem — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:02:47 -0800

My outdoor basil plants are being chewed away by something that leaves behind tiny black grains. Who is the culprit, and how can I stop it? Whatever it is chews holes in the leaves of my basil plants, either straight through or leaving a thin clear membrane behind between the veins of the leaves. There are also tiny black dots on some of the leaves (as in, sitting on the leaves, they're not a part of the leaves or a discoloration). I have a feeling the two are connected.

Bonus points if the solution doesn't involve heavy-duty pesticides.

Basil bounty suggestions

jujube — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 11:08:43 -0800

What to do with my basil bounty? Looking for yummy recipes that will freeze/keep well, as well as recipes to take advantage of special flavors/colors, etc. I've looked at this and this previous questions. And while some answers were YUM!, I'm wondering if folks have other ideas/suggestions?

AND, suggestions that are specific to these varieties that I have would be AWESOME!

Thanks!!

Varieties I have are:
Cinnamon Basil - very sweet, cinnamon scent
Fino Verde Basil - "Piccolo' type basil with a very small leaf.
Holy Basil (both green & red varieties) - Called 'Kaprao' in Thailand, 'Tulsi' in India, this has a musky scent with a hint of mint.
Lime Basil - As the name says, very lime-y.
Mrs. Burns' Lemon Basil - Very lemony.
Spicy Bush Basil - Slightly hot with mint, citrus, flowers, spice and anise.
Sweet Thai Basil - Strongest spicy anise-clove scent.
Red Rubin - Large red leaves with a strong basil flavor.

Can I replant rooted herbs I got from a grocery store?

icollectpurses — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 09:12:57 -0800

Can I replant rooted herbs I got from a local grocery store? My local grocery store sells a bunch of healthy basil, the roots and everything. I know with some plants like scallions you can plant it in dirt and be able to grow it, but wasn't sure about rooted herbs.

Anyone with green thumb that's tried this?

I heard somewhere that once things have been rooted you can't plant it again to grow, but trees get replanted all the time.

pepper pesto?

jujube — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:56:22 -0800

Made some pesto with chili pepper leaves by mistake. Now what? I picked some chili pepper leaves by mistake, thinking it was a variety of basil. Made pesto with the leaves, along with some real basil leaves. Ate some. Stomach feeling a little upset, but am otherwise fine. Plus, the upset part just might be psychological. I know the leaves of nightshade family are supposed to be poisonous, but this ,this , and this say that leaves are eatable, especially those from a young plant. Should I throw the rest of the pesto out? Should I save it?

Indoor herb garden

crush-onastick — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:47:32 -0800

Last summer, I was walking through Boy's Town here in Chicago when some guys handed me a mint plant to advertise some new plant delivery service in the area, focusing on plants for cooking. I did not want to raise fresh herbs last summer, but now I do and, although the mint is thriving in my mom's garden, I have lost the business card that came with it! My websearch skills are not helping me find them; anyone know the company? Alternately, do you have a local place where you buy your indoor herb garden that you can recommend to me? Mail order's fine, too, I suppose.

Does basil taste like pot for anyone else?

Anonymous — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 04:50:37 -0800

Does basil fried rice taste like marijuana to anyone else, or is it just me? Am I tasting the spice wrong? I just had basil fried rice at a Chinese/Thai restaurant called Fusion's, in Ashland MA. As far as I know, I've never had anything else with basil before, and to me the food tasted strongly like marijuana. Like, very, very "I just took a hit and I'm holding the smoke in my mouth" strongly. Meanwhile, the beef fried rice I ordered tasted just fine. My friends were dining with me and ate the remainder of the dish after I realized how bad it tasted, and they all think it tasted fine and not at all like pot. I came home and asked more friends, and they all agree that I'm nuts.

I'm thinking I vaguely remember a post about certain people mis-tasting certain foods, particularly spices, but I can only find posts on Miraculin. Any ideas? Does anyone agree?

What is this amazing drink?

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 16:46:05 -0800

A bartender made me an awesome drink that had basil, cucumber, strawberries, and (white?) rum in it. What was it? I think that he combined the first three in a mortar and pestle and later added rum (and maybe some other stuff?). It was not very sweet at all but tasted light and refreshing and nice. (at least I think it was. I was already on the far end of schnockered when I drank it)

What is this drink? Or, how can I create a drink from these ingredients that tastes amazing?

Missing: Lemon basil marinade.

phaded — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 19:28:58 -0800

I'm looking for a lemon basil marinade my dad used to buy but hasn't been able to find in quite some time. Some years ago, my dad used to buy this lemon basil marinade made by Lawry's. It went very well with grilled chicken breast in particular. However, we haven't been able to find it for a very long time, which leads me to suspect it's been discontinued. A quick search of their website shows a lemon pepper marinade, which is okay, but not nearly as good as the lemon basil was.

What I'm looking for is either a replacement marinade I can buy in the store or a recipe I could whip up myself. Does anyone know the marinade I'm talking about, and could anyone suggest a replacement?

If it helps, I'm on Long Island.

Got any Basil-tastic recipes?

SpecialK — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 22:36:02 -0800

I have a big, bushy, fragrant, delightful Sweet Basil plant... and nothing to do with the astounding amount of basil it's producing. I'm a bachelor, so my kitchen supplies are kinda limited. I'd be open to making my own pasta sauces, but it's summer here in Texas and I'm not really eating that much hot pasta... I'm eating a lot more cold leafy salads (and yes, I already do use the basil in basil/parmesan/arugula salad), cold pasta salads, grilled meats, and mexican food (wraps, fajitas, tacos, etc.) than I am italian.

My girlfriend, who got me the basil plant, is coming over for dinner tonight. Any recipes that will wow her but not break my budget? Only thing she doesn't like is grilled steak.

her favorite foods are cigarette butts and junk mail, should I add basil to the list?

Kellydamnit — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 11:29:32 -0800

Will my cat eat basil? What happens if she does? So the local grocery has basil plants on sale, and I was thinking it would be pretty nice to take advantage of the massive amount of sun my place gets, buy two or three, and set up a big pot of the stuff for use whenever I want.

The problem is, I have a cat. A terror of a cat, to be more specific. One who, while she will use the litterbox, has resisted any attempts at training above and beyond that. (she was used, so I suspect the problem was beyond fixing once we got her. I'm just happy she now knows enough not to jump on tables when we can see her).

If I do this will she eat the basil (well, odds are she will, she's a nut). More specifically, is basil something cats are drawn to?
And if she does eat it, will it harm her in any way?

Hydroponic and/or solar-powered container gardening?

allterrainbrain — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 01:26:04 -0800

Solar-powered and/or hydroponic apartment gardening: have you done it or something like it? Do you like or dislike any commercial solar kits or hydroponics kits, or suppliers of seeds & equipment for container gardening? I'm good with plants, but I haven't gardened with a focus on producing food since I was a kid. I've started doing research on container gardening, minimal solar systems, and hydroponics -- both on mefi & elsewhere. I'm looking to set up a system that will pay for itself within a couple of years (cost of all the gear vs. what I'd pay for the amount of organic produce it produces), so we're probably talking under $1000.

So this question is about putting those three elements together with budget as a big factor, and about specific crops to try. I'm thinking cherry tomatoes, strawberries, basil, mint -- generally, any stuff I like that's both expensive to buy organic and decently efficient to grow in a container.

Have you done this or anything like it?? What were your successes & failures? Do you recommend any particular suppliers of hydroponic kits, solar kits, or seeds?

For reference: I'm in NYC, facing south-by-southwest with sun all day; I pay for my own electricity; and I have only a fire escape (no balcony), so I can only put very minimal amounts of stuff outside -- we're talking shallow windowboxes plus hydroponic containers just inside the windows with additional (artificial) lighting. Thanks for all thoughts!

What do I do with all this damn basil?

LarryC — Sat, 03 Sep 2005 09:46:17 -0800

What do I do with all this fresh basil? We have been blessed this year with a bountiful crop of basil. A small forest, really. I love the stuff, but am running out of ideas. We have made pesto and frozen plenty for the lean months ahead--now what? Googling seems to produce only more pesto recipes. What are some creative and delicious uses for fresh basil?

How best pick leaves from my herbs?

pieoverdone — Tue, 15 Jun 2004 22:18:11 -0800

So I was blessed this past week with a gift of a mint plant and a basil plant. They're both potted and on my windowsill now. Let's say I want to make something with basil. Do I just pluck the leaves off? Is there some sort of special pruning I need do?