Savory

Today our story is about a plant with useful properties, originally from the Mediterranean, growing on the slopes of rocky cliffs. This is savory. This plant has many other names, it is also called thyme, kondari, citron. This plant was familiar in ancient Rome, where it was used as a medicine, seasoning. It was added to game dishes, as it has a rather strong spicy smell. The nobility of Ancient Rome wore wreaths from savory, it was called like that, as a plant for a wreath. Only after the ninth century did he come to Europe, thanks to the monks, where he gained great popularity and recognition.

The genus includes up to 30 species, which include annual plants, as well as perennials. There is a certain difference between them, they differ in taste, have a different aroma, look different. All species are excellent honey plants, as they bloom continuously for quite a long time. It is an annual shrub that reaches a height of up to 50 cm, has many shoots up to 30 cm long. Leaves up to 2 cm long with pale pink or pale purple small flowers, the fruit is like a nut. It grows almost everywhere now, except perhaps in Antarctica. Since ancient times, it has been called pepper grass, as it tastes similar to black pepper. And since it is much cheaper than pepper, it has gained universal love and popularity. The plant is quite common.

garden savory

Garden savory belongs to the labial family, has a delicate spicy aroma, because of which it is also called fragrant, pepper grass. It has been known for a very long time and was especially loved by the inhabitants of the Transcaucasus and the inhabitants of the Middle East. It is added to many seasonings, added to Georgian, Adjarian adjika, suneli hops.

This species is a bush up to 50 cm high. This annual bush resembles a ball, they look quite impressive. That is why it is loved by gardeners who grow it to decorate borders and garden paths. You can grow at home on balconies, loggias, pots on the windowsill. Care and cultivation will not cause you great difficulties or inconvenience. Just remember to start collecting leaves before flowering begins. By planting a bush on your site, you can make it beautiful and unusual. Place a garden gnome next to it, which will peek out from the greenery. Let tall grass grow nearby, various flower arrangements. All this looks impressive, your site will please the eye and surprise your friends and neighbors.

Savory is a heat-loving plant, loves light places protected from wind and frost. This plant is undemanding to the soil, grows on light soil with fertilizers. Shoots are used throughout the summer period, then cut off for drying. In order not to lose the beneficial properties, bright aroma, it is recommended to dry the herbs in a well-ventilated area, also in places protected from direct sunlight. When ripe, the seeds begin to crumble, so they need to be collected on time. By the end of summer, the seeds turn brown, it’s time to harvest. Plants are cut or uprooted, then hung in attics. For seeds under the branches you need to spread something. After the branches dry, they are threshed, then left for the winter. You can also cut the shoots with buds and dry, without having to separate the leaves from the stem. You can put such dried greens in a glass, tightly closed jar, where it will retain its properties for a long time. Such greens you will find a worthy use in your kitchen.

Mountaineer mountain

Savory mountain grows wild. This is a low perennial bush that grows up to 80 cm, with gray-green leaves. Its leaves are more similar to marjoram, it has a sharper taste. It blooms from the end of summer until October, the fruit of it is a small brown nut.

Savory kondari

Savory kondari is also called garden savory. Usually, dried savory is used more often, as it is more aromatic than fresh. Using herbs, various seasonings, aromatic spices, you can satisfy any food cravings. The spice got its name from the Latin word, which means aroma, smells, taste.

The medicinal properties of the plant

Savory is widely used in medicine, has many useful properties. It can rightfully be called a natural antiseptic. Used for diseases of the stomach, intestines, relieves helminths, has a disinfectant effect, relieves pain. Greens are applied to wounds, after an insect bite, chewed, then applied to the tooth with pain. Good results are obtained by rinsing with a decoction of leaves for sore throats, purulent inflammation of the mucous membranes. Various lotions and baths are used for diseases of the joints, for rheumatism. Add a pinch of savory to your tea and you will feel how you are filled with energy. Using the medicinal properties of this plant, you can alleviate the course of many diseases, get rid of pain. The greens contain essential oil, which has a pronounced aroma. And also added to baths, used for gargling with sore throat, with diseases of the mucous membranes.

Like many medicinal plants, savory has contraindications. It cannot be used for:

• duodenal ulcer;
• kidney disease, liver disease;
• pregnancy, as there is a possibility of miscarriage;
• thyroid diseases;
• hypertension and atrial fibrillation;
• atherosclerosis

With all of the above diseases, you can use fresh and dried herbs in cooking, as well as make various lotions. In this use, you will not harm your body.

Savory in cooking

The plant is used in cooking, serves as an additive to many dishes, such a seasoning can make a fragrant culinary masterpiece out of a simple dish. They use young leaves, the stem of the plant, which are added to salads, added to meat, fish, mushroom dishes, used for pickles, when fermenting cabbage. The antibacterial properties of the plant will help you with salting, canning. A spicy seasoning for legume dishes is perfect, which is why it is also called legume grass. Since savory has a rather strong aroma, it can clog other spices and spices, so you need to use it carefully. In cooking, leaves and stems are used in dry and fresh form. Leaves are best used whole, as they can add bitterness to the dish. It is added at the end of cooking, to an almost ready dish, since bitterness may appear after cooking.

Savory is used in dried form, it serves to add flavor:

• meat dishes (a spice is suitable for lamb, young rabbit, pork, beef);
• chicken, duck dishes;
• minced meat, cutlets, meatballs;
• bean dishes such as lobio, bean salads, soup;
• fish;
• sauces and dressings;
• marinade, pickles

What are the best herbs and spices to use it with? Added to many seasonings, thyme and marjoram make great companions as they share similar flavors. If you don’t have savory, you can safely replace it with these spices. You can also mix with herbs such as basil, oregano, rosemary, sage, fennel, add to garlic and bay leaves, put together with paprika and other peppers.

cooking tips

Pour a pinch of savory or other spices into vegetable oil, leave for a few days. Now add fragrant oil to salads and other dishes, they will sparkle with a new note.

Add fresh leaves to various salads and snacks, dried leaves are added to first courses 5 minutes before the end of cooking. In the event that you will fry foods, add it before cooking.

Fresh and dried herbs contain many useful components, essential oils, phenolic compounds. Tea prepared with the addition of fresh and dried plants will help:

• relieve fatigue;
• improve the functioning of the digestive system;
• normalizes pressure;
• relieve spasm and pain

To prepare an aromatic drink, take a pinch of dried herbs or a few fresh branches, add water, let it boil. Let it brew, drink with pleasure, adding honey or sugar as desired. You can simply add a little spice to black tea to get a fragrant tonic drink. If you add fresh leaves, you need to add a little more of them to give the drink richness and aroma. Your tasty, fragrant drink is ready. Drink and be healthy!