Herbs

Pandan

The vanilla of Southeast Asia, except it is a leaf you knot and simmer.

Parsley

The green that finishes a pot in 27 of the 30 books: not a garnish, a last bright note.

Pennyroyal

The herb the books still call Pennyroyal — a working jar, not a garnish word.

Rose petal

Dried petals for Persian rice, Moroccan tagines, and a cupboard that wants perfume.

Rosemary

The pine-scented needle of roast meats and memory — 'rosemary for remembrance,' and for a chicken that needs a backbone.

Sage

The leaf that loves butter, beans, and a roast — gray-green and a little camphor.

Savory

The bean herb: peppery, small-leaved, and older in European gardens than most cooks remember.

Shiso

Perilla: mint, basil, and cinnamon in one Japanese leaf, around sashimi or in a pickle.

Tarragon

Anise in a leaf: the French tarragon that finishes chicken, vinegar, and béarnaise.

Tea leaf

Loose leaves for a pot and for a marinade — jasmine, black, or the ceremony tray.

Thyme

The small leaf that survives a long simmer: bouquet garni's backbone and the scent of a French Sunday pot.

Wormwood

Chiba in Morocco, absinthe in Europe — a bitter leaf used in pinches, never by the handful.