How to Make a Perfectly French Bouquet Garni

Perhaps the most simple of all French cooking and kitchen ideas, a Bouquet Garni adds a deliciously delicate flavour to dishes including Boeuf Bourguignon, Bouillabaisse, Cassoulet or Coq au Vin.

A bouquet garni is the term for a bundle of culinary herbs used since the 1600s. It is generally created using springs of flat parsley, bay leaves and Thyme, but you can add lavender, tarragon, fennel (yum!) carrot or celery sticks … or whatever herb you think may work with your dish. And don’t think it has to be used solely for a casserole based dish. Consider laying one on fish wrapped in foil or banana leaf.

In Provence, slices of dried orange are added, I like to use fresh orange peel particularly if it’s for a boeuf Bourguignon as it adds a slightly exotic, beautifully fresh hint on citrus.

To make our bouquet garn all you need to do is collect your herbs and tie them together with a piece of string. Add them to your casserole and when it has finished cooking simply discard the garni.

As a gift, simply tie around it a pretty ribbon. It can be given fresh or dried, so it’s not only a beautiful cooking ingredient but the perfect present for Mother’s Day, or for a friend or other loved one.

What ingredient would you add to your bouquet garni?

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