This aromatic herb is important not only in cookery but also as a medicinal plant and to bee-keepers, for it is often visited by bees. It derives its botanical name from the Greek words `ozein', meaning to smell, and `basileus', meaning king, because of its pleasant and penetrating aroma truly worthy of kings.
The young leaves have a pleasant taste resembling that of horseradish and are used, chiefly in Scandinavian countries, as a pungent salad rich in vitamins. Watercress was popular in the days of the Roman Empire.
The fragrance of the foliage is due to the presence of an essential oil which is used also in the perfume industry. Fresh or dried leaves are used primarily for flavouring salads, in recipes where tomatoes are used (also ketchup), in fish as well as meat dishes (ragouts), sauces, sausages and salamis, raw vegetable dishes, herb butter, omelettes and turtle soup. It is very popular in Italian cookery.
Otherwise it will grow, even in a vase of water, and lose its quality. Storing it in the refrigerator is not recommended.
Watercress is used to flavour salads and cheeses and as a garnish in canapes. It gives a pleasant taste to vegetable soups and goes well with freshwater fish. It can also be sprinkled, like chives, on boiled, buttered potatoes, omelettes and scrambled eggs. It is used to make herb butter, often mixed with other aromatic plants. In winter the ripe, ground seeds may be used instead of the leaves in the same ways, and also for flavouring stewed meat. It is advisable not to pick watercress growing wild for plants growing by contaminated water have been known to cause typhus in people, that have eaten them. It is always safer to buy watercress for this has been carefully cultivated in uncontaminated water.
If moisture condenses on them or if they are dried in direct sunlight over a long period the leaves lose their pale-green colour. The herb is harvested during the flowering period; this may be done as often as three times a year by leaving the bottom of the leafy stein so the plant will put out new shoots again. Flowers are produced from June until late August
The young leaves have a pleasant taste resembling that of horseradish and are used, chiefly in Scandinavian countries, as a pungent salad rich in vitamins. Watercress was popular in the days of the Roman Empire.
The fragrance of the foliage is due to the presence of an essential oil which is used also in the perfume industry. Fresh or dried leaves are used primarily for flavouring salads, in recipes where tomatoes are used (also ketchup), in fish as well as meat dishes (ragouts), sauces, sausages and salamis, raw vegetable dishes, herb butter, omelettes and turtle soup. It is very popular in Italian cookery.
Otherwise it will grow, even in a vase of water, and lose its quality. Storing it in the refrigerator is not recommended.
Watercress is used to flavour salads and cheeses and as a garnish in canapes. It gives a pleasant taste to vegetable soups and goes well with freshwater fish. It can also be sprinkled, like chives, on boiled, buttered potatoes, omelettes and scrambled eggs. It is used to make herb butter, often mixed with other aromatic plants. In winter the ripe, ground seeds may be used instead of the leaves in the same ways, and also for flavouring stewed meat. It is advisable not to pick watercress growing wild for plants growing by contaminated water have been known to cause typhus in people, that have eaten them. It is always safer to buy watercress for this has been carefully cultivated in uncontaminated water.
If moisture condenses on them or if they are dried in direct sunlight over a long period the leaves lose their pale-green colour. The herb is harvested during the flowering period; this may be done as often as three times a year by leaving the bottom of the leafy stein so the plant will put out new shoots again. Flowers are produced from June until late August
