I did not like cilantro. I would even go so far as to say I hated it.
It wasn’t the ‘soap’ taste some people get; I just found it overpowered everything.
After a visit to a local chef’s garden and learning about cilantro lifecycle, everything ‘cilantro’ changed for me. I saw firsthand how soft, fluffy cilantro grows taller, the leaves become frilly and more potent, and then edible white flowers appear and give way to the coriander seed, first green and then dried.
And every step of that growth tastes different.
Start with the young, soft cilantro. This is what we typically see sold (in a bunch) at the store in the U.S. These are called basal leaves. If you’re not a fan of cilantro, you might say the taste is potent, but this is actually the mildest form of cilantro.
As the cilantro bolts, the tender, fluffy leaves give way to the frilly, more intense-flavored leaves, and the potent, miniature white flowers bloom.
Often, when a plant creates a flower, the rest of the plant becomes bitter. With cilantro, it’s similar except we tend to call the flavor more ‘potent’, plus there is a bonus of the coriander seed.
The mini flowers are so flavorful, more than three decorating a soup will overpower the whole bowl! The flowers, when left on the plant, make the coriander seed. It’s bright green when fresh, and brown once dried.
If you harvest the unripe, green seeds before they mature and dry, this is the rare, unripe, green coriander seed. The aroma is concentrated in the green husk that surrounds the unripe seed. It’s powerful, like the basal leaves on steroids! Pickle, ferment, toss in salsa or sprinkle on things, like I did on this Burrata with Oranges.
Once that seeds dries, it’s sold either as whole coriander seed or ground coriander, is warm, nutty and earthy. Both have a plethora of uses. I used the ground in my Red Lentil Curry, Beet Pastrami and Scattered Turkey Meatballs. The coriander seeds add a great crunch spiced oil and in my famous Dukkah Seasoning.
So all these options from one plant.
Palettes change…. if you get curious and allow.