Dumb Question - Measuring Fresh Herbs

[Peggy]

I'm alitle embarrassed to ask this question... I use fresh herbs fairly frequently when cooking and have always measured the herbs before they were chopped. Yesterday I was using fresh basil and it suddenly hit me that maybe I should be chopping it first and then measuring the chopped up version, not the full leaves. Would someone be good enough to enlighten me regarding the correct measuring method? Thank you in advance for for educating me! This could have a big influence on the flavor of a dish!!!

[Shirley Panek]

I'm not exactly sure, but this is what I do...

If it says something like "1 Tablespoon chopped dill," I chop and then measure. If it says, "1 Tablespoon dill, chopped", I measure then chop.

I'm not sure where I heard it, or if I'm assuming this from the whole "1 cup sifted flour" versus "1 cup flour, sifted" debate I once had.

I think CL had a whole article about fresh herbs (in '98?) - I'll have to look it up and see what they said.

Hope this helps. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[lindrusso]

If a recipe calls for a tablespoon of chopped basil or a 1/4 cup of finely chopped parsley, I always chop first and then measure.

I guess there could be room for interpretation of the recipe read something like "1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped", but other than that I'd say chop first, then measure.

[lorilei]

I'm not sure either, but here's another suggestion:

I always go according to the recipe directions. For instance, if the ingredients call for 1 cup of basil and then I read further down and the instructions say "chop basil finely", I assume that the one cup of basil is "unchopped". On the other hand, if it calls for 1 cup chopped basil in the ingredients, I consider it to be one cup (chopped).

Unfortunately (and maybe I need to say this before you take my advice), I'm one of those people who walks unafraid into the realms of spices and "heat". So, if I happen to add a bit too much of something, I'm not usually upset. Similarly, I'll usually keep adding stuff until it tastes good to me, so I probably end up destroying the recipe in the end anyhow.

Regardless, I hope this helps http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Gail]

I agree with the consensus here. One thing I would add is that in some cases you also let your personal preference be your guide. By that I mean, I'm not wild about fennel (and fennel's not wild about me...Sorry.) so I tend to undercut the amount I use in a recipe, no matter what the instruction says. Cooking isn't dependent upon preciseness as baking is-- quite often even if you follow a recipe to a tee, you may decide the recipe would be better if you added or subtracted a little of something.

[Peggy]

Ladies,

Thank you all for your insights and input!! I think I have a much better handle on this issue. I was cruising through some cookbooks tonight evaluating how they word their fresh herb ingredients and some are more clear than others. When all else fails I will consider your guidelines and trust my intuition.

Thanks again for your speedy and thoughtful replies!

Peggy