11 Dishes with Specialty Herbs

Imagine celery combined with parsley and a little black pepper, and you've got the flavor of lovage. It's not widely cultivated, so you may need to grow your own or encourage a farmer at the market to grow some for you.

Lovage has such a distinct flavor that it does well when tamed by gentler ingredients—like the lettuce, cream, white rice, and leeks in this soup. Use young, glossy leaves; when lovage is too mature, it gets bitter and overpowering.

Recipe: Lovage and Lettuce Soup

One of the most delicate-textured herbs, chervil has a subtle anise-like flavor that's especially good with mildly flavored vegetables and fish.

The gentle licorice-like flavor of chervil leads the swirl of spring flavors in this refined dish fit for a party. It’s fast and easy—just be sure not to overcook the halibut.

Recipe: Roasted Halibut with Chervil Sauce

When your garden gives you flowers and vegetables, use them both to make a salad that tastes like pure spring.

Recipe: Eat-Your-Garden Salad

Highly aromatic lemon verbena feels almost sticky due to the oils in the leaves that are responsible for its fragrance and pungent lemony flavor. Steep, then strain the leaves to extract their flavor in soups and ice cream bases.

Lemon verbena leaves are very fragrant and make excellent crème brûlée and ice cream. Verbena (as it's most often called) isn't widely available in markets, but it's easy to grow. If you don't happen to have some handy, you can use another aromatic herb such as mint or tarragon.

Recipe: Lemon Verbena Ice Cream

Sweet, tangy, and a little bit spicy, pineapple soup is a traditional meal in Southeast Asia. If you don't have lemon verbena growing in your garden, you could substitute other aromatic Asian herbs such as Thai basil or fresh cilantro.

Recipe: Pineapple Chicken Soup with Lemon Verbena

Closely related to oregano, marjoram tastes similar, but sweeter and more subtle. It's a natural with Italian-style pasta dishes and meats.

The lamb is great, but it’s the toasty garlic sauce that gets drizzled over the top that makes this dish a winner. If you like lamb, but you love garlic, then this is the recipe for you.

Recipe: Lamb Shoulder Roast with Roasted Garlic Sauce

Instead of loading pasta shells with lots of cheese, use less and combine it with delicate ribbons of fresh vegetables. A mandoline will give you the most delicate veggie ribbons, but you can also use a vegetable peeler.

Recipe: Vegetable Ribbon Pasta Shells

Also known as perilla, shiso has hints of basil, cinnamon, and anise that pair well with Japanese seasonings and with the mild, buttery flavor of avocados.

The warm anise flavor of shiso, encouraged by the licoricey fennel, comes through clearly in this pretty salad. You can use either red or green shiso (red is slightly stronger in flavor) or a combination.

Recipe: Avocado, Grapefruit, and Shiso Salad

This Asian-inspired guac is loosely based on a recipe from Hawaiian chef Alan Wong. Serve it with daikon sticks, radishes, or taro chips.

Recipe: Sake Soy Guacamole

One of the most important ingredients in Southeast Asian cooking, Thai basil gives a pungent licorice-like aroma and zing to soups, noodle dishes, meats, and seafood.

Big, bold Southeast Asian flavors team up in a perfect balance of salty, sweet, hot, and aromatic.

Recipe: Cracked Crab with Lemongrass, Black Pepper, and Thai Basil

This dish requires some multitasking, but the benefits of creating something this delicious in only 30 minutes are well worth the hustle.

Recipe: Vietnamese Steak Noodle Salad