Basil

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) of the Family Lamiaceae is also known as Albahaca, St. Joseph's Wort,

and Sweet Basil. It is a tender low-growing annual herb, originally native to tropical Asia. It

grows to between twenty and sixty centimetres tall, with opposite, light green, silky leaves one

and a half to five centimetres long and one to three centimetres broad. It tastes somewhat like

anise, with a strong, pungent, sweet smell. Basil is very sensitive to cold, with best growth in

hot, dry conditions.

The word basil comes from the Greek βασιλευς, meaning “king”, as it is believed

to have grown above the spot where St. Constantine and Helen discovered the Holy Cross. The Oxford

English Dictionary quotes speculations that basil may have been used in "some royal unguent, bath,

or medicine". Basil is still considered the "king of herbs" by many cookery authors.

Basil is most commonly used fresh, and in cooked recipes, is generally added at the last

moment, as cooking destroys the flavour quickly. The fresh herb can be kept for a short time in

plastic bags in the refrigerator, or for a longer period in the freezer, after being blanched

quickly in boiling water. Place fresh leaves in a dry jar with a pinch of salt, and cover with

olive oil. The dried herb also loses most of its flavour, and what little flavour remains tastes

very different, with a weak coumarin flavour, like hay.

Mediterranean and Thai cuisines frequently use basil, the former frequently combining it

with tomato. Basil is one of the main ingredients in pesto — an Italian sauce from the city of

Genoa. The most commonly used Mediterranean basil cultivars are "Genovese", "Purple Ruffles",

"Mammoth", "Cinnamon", "Lemon", "Globe", and "African Blue". Vietnamese and Chinese also use fresh

or dried basils in soups and other foods. In Taiwan, people add fresh basil leaves into thick soups

(羹湯; gēngtāng). They also eat fried chicken with deep-fried basil leaves.

Basil is sometimes used with fresh fruit and in fruit jams and sauces — in particular with

strawberries, but also raspberries or dark-colored plums. Arguably the flat-leaf basil used in

Vietnamese cooking, which has a slightly different flavour, is more suitable for use with fruit.

When soaked in water the seeds of several basil varieties become gelatinous, and are used in

Asian drinks and desserts such as falooda or sherbet. Such seeds are known variously as sabja,

subja, takmaria, tukmaria, or falooda seeds. They are used for their medicinal properties in

Ayurveda, the traditional medicinal system of India.

Several other basils, including some other Ocimum species, are grown in many regions of

Asia. Most of the Asian basils have a clove-like flavour that is generally stronger than the

Mediterranean basils. In China, the local cultivar is called 九層塔 (jiǔcéngtǎ; literally

"nine-level pagoda"), while the imported varieties are specifically called 羅勒 (luólè) or

巴西里 (bāxīlǐ).