John Myers
If you own a shrub of lemon verbena, you can consider yourself lucky. Because the kitchen herb smells wonderful and enriches many dishes and drinks with its lemony taste.
Wonderfully fresh herb: lemon verbena
Lemon verbena is a South American relative of verbena. The Aloysia citrodora, the botanical name of the plant, beguiles with its fresh fragrance and strong citrus aroma. Fresh leaves can be used wonderfully for herbal recipes, the dried leaves are poured with hot water to make a tasty tea. As a medicinal herb, the lemon bush is said to have a calming effect, and the verbena plant is also said to relieve indigestion. The lemon verbena cannot be found in this country as an edible wild plant, but you can cultivate the plant yourself. In the garden bed or in a larger pot, the lemon bush grows into a strong plant that can reach a height of up to three meters. In contrast to the verbena, however, the sister of verbena is only partially hardy and should not be left outside during the cold season. You can harvest fresh leaves of the herb all year round. For larger quantities, it is best to stock up on dried Aloysia citrodora leaves when you cut them back.
You can do this with the lemon verbena
Whether fresh lemon verbena or dried leaves for tea, the plant inspires with its versatile uses. It tastes great as an ingredient in herbal quark, yoghurt, or pesto, refines desserts and cakes, gives jams that certain something, serves as a fresh spice for fish and mushroom dishes, and can be used as a salad herb. As for drinks, in addition to tea, lemon verbena syrup is also very tasty, or you can add a few lemon verbena leaves to your smoothie. Insects that like to sting can also be repelled with the plant by simply smoking a few dried leaves. Similar to tea tree oil, lemon verbena oil is also available for purchase to use as a fragrance.
Dosage of fresh leaves in tea and food
If you have your own lemon verbena plant, you can easily use a leaf here and there in the kitchen. For a tea that focuses on the healing effect, it is best to use about five fresh leaves and let them steep for about ten minutes. The aroma also unfolds better if you harvest fresh from the plant instead of using dried tea. If you fancy a cold drink, we recommend a glass of healthy lemon water as an alternative. Since lemon verbena tastes just as intense as lemon balm, you should use caution when seasoning food – otherwise the citrus aroma may be too dominant.
