Low oxalate dieters can improve the flavor of foods (and have more fun cooking!) by carefully using herbs and spices on the low oxalate diet. Dried herbs and spices quickly lose their flavor in your kitchen cabinet but they don’t lose their oxalate content. The result – you may be getting a lot more oxalate and a lot less flavor than you want.
Basil and thyme are two favorites in the low oxalate herb garden.
Tips for using Herbs and Spices on the Low Oxalate Diet:
1.) Go through your cabinet and throw out any herb or spice older than 6 months. If you aren’t sure, open the jar or bag and take a whiff. Do you get that almost overpowering fresh basil smell or fresh cinnamon smell? If not, toss it. Old herbs and spices are only adding oxalate, not yummy goodness to your cooking.
2.) Try buying your herbs and spices in small quantities. Many major grocery chains and most natural health markets sell bulk spices. I buy only a tablespoon or two of basil or nutmeg at a time (what I know I’ll use in 1-2 months), so I always have the freshest tastes. For something like sage that I use less often, I may buy it especially for the dish I’m planning to cook (or I grow it in my herb garden!)
3.) Pay special attention to when you add an herb or spice to a dish. According to the authors of The Joy of Cooking, you will get the best results from delicately-flavored, fresh herbs if you only add them to sauces and soups in the last stages of preparation (I’ve heard from other chefs that the last 10-15 minutes of cooking is often ideal for fresh herbs).
4.) Dried herbs have greater flavor if you reconstitute them before adding them to your dishes. To do this, soak them for 10 minutes to 1 hour in some liquid or oil that you can later add to your recipe, such as water, vinegar, chicken broth, olive oil or wine. You can also simmer then gently in butter.
5.) Some powerfully-flavored herbs like mint, gain flavor in dishes overnight. One of my favorites, mint cucumber sauce, tastes mintier if I mix the mint and yogurt the day before. Try experimenting with tastes. You may be able to use half as much herbs for the same amount of flavor if you give the flavors in your soups and salads plenty of time to sit and blend before eating them.
Photo credit for Basil, Thyme and Marigold goes to kirybabe.
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