Cilantro - Fresh Cut

Stand the stems in an inch of water, bag the tops loosely and refrigerate; it will hold four to five days. Chop stems and leaves together - the stems carry more flavour than the leaves. Add at the very end of cooking, or raw.

• Grown in: Lineville, Alabama (no pesticides)
• Freshness: Harvested at peak and sold fresh
• Availability: Seasonal - local Alabama delivery & pickup
• Storage: Stems in water, tops loosely bagged, refrigerated - 4 to 5 days

• Light: Grown in full sun through the cool months, with afternoon shade once the days warm
• Water: Grown on steady moisture and never allowed to dry out, which is what pushes it to bolt
• Soil: Sown into loose, fertile, well-drained beds so the taproot can run straight down; cilantro resents being moved, so it is direct-sown where it will be cut.
• Feeding: Fed a light dose of nitrogen every few weeks to keep new leaves coming, nothing heavy enough to thin the flavour.

Why does cilantro taste like soap to some people?
It is genetic, not a growing fault. A variation in the OR6A2 receptor gene makes a subset of people read cilantro's aldehydes as soap. No amount of freshness changes it, and there is no way to grow it out.

Can I use the stems?
Use them first. The stems carry more of the citrus and pepper than the leaves do. Chop stems and leaves together rather than picking leaves off.

Is this the same plant as coriander?
Yes. The leaves and stems are cilantro; the dried seed from the same plant is coriander. They taste nothing alike, so one will not substitute for the other.

When should I add it to cooking?
At the very end, off the heat, or raw. Cilantro's top notes burn off within about twenty minutes of heat and what is left is flat.