Not Just For Fish: For Which Dishes Is Dill Suitable?

Dill tastes piquant and tart, at the same time somewhat sweet and very fresh. Accordingly, it is quite versatile in the kitchen. Although the herb is mainly known as a seasoning for fish, it can also round off the taste of salads, soups, or various types of vegetables.

Basically, the entire dill plant is suitable for seasoning dishes. However, the different parts of the plant differ in taste. Dill seeds taste particularly intense. The so-called dill tips and leaves are still tart in taste. The blossomed dill crowns give off a rather mild aroma.

Dill should only be cooked briefly in warm dishes, otherwise, it will quickly lose its aroma. It is therefore ideally added to cooked dishes just before serving. Since dill has a very distinctive taste, it should not be combined with other aromatically dominant herbs such as thyme or rosemary. Dill goes well with onions, garlic, and parsley.

• Fish: In this country, dill is particularly well-known as a spice for fish. It gives salmon in particular a fresh, spicy aroma. For the Scandinavian specialty “Graved Salmon”, for example, salmon is marinated in dill and other spices. But other types of fish can also be flavored with dill: trout or sea bass are just two examples. Herring can also be aromatically supplemented with dill.
• Salads: Dill gives various salad dressings a spicy yet sweet freshness. Mild cucumber salad, for example, receives a depth of taste. But various leaf salads can also be aromatically supplemented and refined in this way. Finally, dill is also suitable for adding the final aromatic touch to potato salad. Salad dressings based on vinegar and oil are particularly suitable for combining with dill. But yogurt, whipped cream, or sour cream are also suitable ingredients.
• Vegetables: Vegetables can also be refined with dill, for example in a dip made from quark or yogurt for raw vegetables. Alternatively, dill can be sprinkled over stir-fries of vegetables to add flavor just before serving. The aroma of the herb is particularly suitable for mushrooms or peppers but also goes well with carrots.
• Stews and soups: Various soups and stews can be flavored just before serving by adding dill. Potato soups, for example, are very good for this. Such a soup is often made even richer by adding cream. Borscht is also traditionally prepared with dill. Here the herb forms an aromatic contrast to the sweetness of the beetroot and the mildness of the sour cream.