I got a small package of mint leaves, and I love the flavor of mint, but I'm quite unsure how to use them. 1) How do you get the flavor from them? Do you need to extract the oils in a certain way? 2) What about making a mint mashed potatoes recipe using the leaves?
We pick them away from the stem, and then chop them on a cutting board (not too fine, just enough to get them into manageable small pirces). We roll the chopped leaves into pork or beef for meatballs, use in salads, and have begun adding it to various other dishes. It also adds a great flavor to coleslaw. Don't use too much, but anytime you might use oregano or cilantro, try it with mint instead and you might be surprised at how good it is. Bob H
Just use the leaves, chiffonade them and add for desserts. The leaves muddled with sugar for cocktails. Mint and lamb go perfectly together. Mint, yogurt, lemon juice and garlic make a great sauce for kabobs, gyros, kaftehs, etc. Dice tomato, dice cucumber, dice red onion, add mint lemon juice and generous olive oil for a super refreshing salad.
Like most other fresh herbs, the stems (the stalk) usually remains tough, even with cooking. For me, it's the part that usually winds up getting stuck in my teeth, etc. I only worry about the main stalk, and not so much about the stem of the individual leaf. Chopping them helps release the oils that create the flavor, but we usually just rough chop when we add it to food. My wife is Lebanese, so I think she has a genetic imperative to add it to lamb, too. We've cut way back on red meat, so the mint really adds interest to whatever she makes. Bob H
Mint Juleps! Muddle leaves in a couple of teaspoons of sugar plus just a touch of bourbon at the bottom of a tall glass. Fill glass to top with more bourbon or add some soda water along the way and stir until leaves are well mixed. Delish but deadly ...
Mint is also great in Vietnamese spring rolls...like a nice salad all rolled into a burrito...my kids love em so we make them all summer!