Last year, Christine Huang and I traded some of my mint for a few or her Shiso plants. I am the only person who has ever killed mint, and I did it again with all the rest of what I gave her. On the other hand, the Shiso that she gave me is growing like a weed, having overgrown a 5 square foot container. There must be more than 50, perhaps 100 plants shoved in the space. I have made pesto, I add it to eggs in the morning, shrimp tofu for dinner, and everything in between and I have not put a dent in it.
I like to use it to wrap sashimi. Mackerel is best with tuna a close second. Dip the fish into soy then wrap the leaf around the fish. Wasabi optional.
We have a plant this year but it seems a bit rustic compared to one we had a few years ago.
Pickled Shiso Leaves. There are many iterations online, but here’s an interesting article:
By the way - the ones you gave me are green, not the pretty purple ones, but it probably works just as good with a green ones.
I never got back to you with the smoked, dried, ground Carolina Reapers, but if Marty is still interested, I can drop some off. WARNING - they are insanely spicy - one tiny piece the size of a grain of sand will make his mouth burn about as much as he could possible want.
Green works perfectly well pickled. The purple ones are tougher and usually need to be pickled or cooked before eating.
We’re in a rental on the other side of Scarsdale right now as the house is being renovated. No garden, really I don’t think either of us could handle the Reaper
Wonderful addition to various mint and basil-like leafy fresh accompaniments to Vietnamese food.
I was flipping channels while eating breakfast and someone was making shiso aioli on The Food Network as an accompaniment to Amberjack tartar/ceviche. I will try to make that and report back.
The purple is also used as a natural coloring to many foods.
The stuff I have seems to be turning redder on the underside of the leaves, but is still mostly green. Maybe it is just a ripeness thing.
Today I finely chopped the shiso and added it to spinach and sauteed onions before making scrambled eggs for breakfast. Added a but of earthy lemon and spice flavor.