Sage

Flavour and aroma

musky, camphor, slightly bitter, savoury. Earthy, musky, slightly bitter.

Heat

No heat

Forms

dried, fresh

How to use it

• fry · Tadka (tempering) technique

  Fry fresh leaves in butter or oil over medium heat for 20–40 seconds until crisp and the butter is nutty; drain and use as a garnish or sauce for pasta and gnocchi.

• use raw

  Use dried sage sparingly (about 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage per 4 servings) in stuffings and sausage meat; it gets bitter and medicinal in excess.

• crush · Dry grinding technique

  Crumble rubbed sage between your fingers just before adding.

• Stuffing for roast chicken and turkey
• Sage and brown butter for gnocchi and ravioli
• Sausages and pork
• Saltimbocca

Identifying good quality

Soft, grey-green, velvety oval leaves with a pebbled surface. Dried sage is sold whole, 'rubbed' (fluffy and crumbled) or ground. It should smell strongly of camphor and pine; dull grey-brown leaves are old.

• Not to be confused with Dried mint: Dried mint is greener, smells of menthol and lacks sage's camphor.

Origin and history

Origin: The northern Mediterranean coast, especially the Balkans (Salvia officinalis).. Grown and used: Grown in Albania, Croatia, Turkey, Greece and temperate gardens; used in Italian, British and American cooking..

Sage was valued by the Romans as a medicinal herb and remained a common European kitchen herb. It is central to Italian saltimbocca and brown butter sauces, to British sage-and-onion stuffing and sausages, and to American Thanksgiving stuffing.

Commonly told; not firmly documented