Fresh Chervil

Fresh chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium) — the most delicate of the classic French herbs and one of the four components of fines herbes, alongside parsley, tarragon and chives. Chervil has a soft, lacy leaf and a flavour that sits somewhere between parsley and tarragon: gently anise, faintly sweet, with none of the assertiveness that makes tarragon divisive. It is a finishing herb, not a cooking herb — heat destroys its character within seconds.

Chervil occupies a specific role in French cooking that no other herb can fill. It provides a subtle complexity without announcing itself, which is why it appears so consistently in classical preparations: folded through omelettes, scattered over spring vegetables, stirred into béarnaise, finished over consommé, or used as one of the defining herbs in a sauce ravigote. It is also one of the few herbs that works well with eggs, cream and butter without competing — which is exactly where French cooking tends to deploy it. Outside of classical technique, chervil is a natural partner for seafood, white-fleshed fish, new potatoes, peas, and anything where a heavier herb would overwhelm. Use generously — the flavour is gentle and the leaves are light, so what looks like a lot on the plate is exactly the right amount.

Origin: France

Ingredients: Fresh chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium)

Storage: Refrigerate immediately. Wrap loosely in slightly damp kitchen paper inside a sealed container. Chervil is more perishable than most herbs — use within two to three days.