Curious Cook

Curious Cook in the New York Times: Cilantro flavor, loved and hated

In today's column I write about the flavor of fresh coriander leaves, and how it is that they can be eaten with pleasure in much of the world but taste inedibly soapy to many people in the U.S.

In the column I don't mention the recent study from Reyes et al (last reference below), which reports that cilantro leaf extracts damage DNA, and therefore that cilantro could be a long-term health hazard. These are very preliminary findings and no reason for fans to give up cilantro, but it's a subject worth following as more information comes in.

Curious Cook in the New York Times: Chemical signals that boost basil flavor

In today's Curious Cook column I write about the elusive flavor advantage of organic foods, and about a simple treatment that can increase the flavorfulness of basil and quite possibly other herbs and vegetables.

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P. Maeder et al., Wheat quality in organic and conventional farming: results of a 21 year field experiment. J. Science of Food and Agriculture, 2007, 87, 1826-35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.2866

H.-J. Kim et al. Effect of chitosan on the biological properties of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.). J. Agriculture and Food Chemistry 2005, 53, 3696-3701. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf0480804