This is my first post so I thought I’d better talk about the fragrant herb, thyme, which inspired the name of this blog.
I like nothing better than cooking with perfect ingredients, preferably home-grown, or if not, then grown by some farmer from whom I can buy directly and cheaply from the local market. I am lucky that I live in a place in which I can do that (not so lucky though, as I can only do that about 6 months of the year, the remaining 6 months being more or less cold or frozen).
Thyme has been one of my favorites because it is so rewarding: Starting in the spring with a tender (but already fragrant) set of tiny sprigs sprouting sprightly from the little starter pot, then transplanting into a larger pot when the days start to get warmer and placing it on my balcony, and like magic more and more sprigs, stronger each day, start sprouting out, getting longer and tanglier with each passing day.
Then running a hand gently over the mass of tangles will waft out the wonderful, warm and herbal fragrance that reminds me of roasted chickens and olive oil potatoes and soups full of summer goodness.
It is a warm, green, happy sort of plant. I feel so sorry for those thyme sprigs packed tightly into little plastic packages and waiting for someone to come buy them at a couple of dollars a pop, all the life and fragrance sucked out of them.
Thyme is easy to grow over spring and summer and can survive quite hardily indoors with minimum care – just be sure to water and provide as much sunlight as is reasonably possible.
Here is a simple thyme stuffing to place under the chicken skin before popping a chicken for roasting in the oven, courtesy of Jacques Pepin:
Thyme Stuffing (for under the chicken skin):
A handful of thyme sprigs
a couple of shallots
salt & pepper
olive oil and butter
1 – Chop the shallots finely. Melt 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter together and saute the shallots until they are soft.
2 – Add thyme leaves that you have slipped off the branches (slide your thumb and index finger along the thyme branches and slide the leaves off). Use as much as you want. Mix them with the shallots not longer than 1 minute.
3 – Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper (be generous).
4 – Slip mixture evenly under the chicken breast skin and leg/thigh skin. Roast the chicken per your normal method.
Tip for saving those poor grocery store thyme sprigs
I always have more in those packets than I actually need and the rest invariably goes bad in the fridge so just dry the leftover herbs in the oven at a very low temperature (less than 180 F) for a couple of hours. Then pack them away in an airtight container – they will be much fuller flavored than the dried versions you get at the grocery store. You can of course do this with almost any herb – the internet offers many other methods of drying as well.
A Tangle of Thyme 