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Lemon basil and cinnamon basil recipes

CaraRose
10 years ago

Okay, so I have a thriving lemon basil and a equally thriving (though I should deadhead before it goes to seed, such a pretty flower I let it flower a bit) cinnamon basil.

I have no idea how to use them in cooking. Any suggestions? Any sweet basil recipes that I could replace the sweet basil with one of these others?

Comments (6)

  • nickl
    10 years ago

    You've got to be a bit more specific.

    If you are talking about true lemon basil (Indonesian kemangi), it is not a flavor form of sweet basil - it is actually a different species or maybe a fertile hybrid of two basil species.

    Kemangi is used in Laotian and Malay cooking, and it is the only type of basil used in Indonesian cooking. It is also used in what is called Dutch-Indonesian cuisine. Look up under the name 'kemangi' and you will find many recipes.

    Kemangi is hard to find outside of some ethnic markets, but it was as easy to grow as any other basil . We grew some a few years ago for a friend who had lived in Indonesia. He obtained the seed under the name of "Hoary Basil", which I guess is one of the American names for it.

    Lemon- flavored basils, on the other hand, are just flavor forms of sweet basil. To some extent, you can substitute them for the true lemon basil but the effect won't be quite the same. You can use it in any recipe that calls for sweet basil where you want to have some lemon flavor.

    Can't help you with the cinnamon basil - never used it or grew it.

  • seysonn
    10 years ago

    Basil Recipe ? search PESTO. !!
    I just like them fresh with grills, burgers, in salads,.... Also add to pasta dishes/sauces before serving. Basil loses its aroma, when cooked too long or dried. This is the opposite of oregano and thyme.

  • balloonflower
    10 years ago

    Lemon basil is especially nice with chicken or seafood. Also, in dessert applications like sorbets. See below for a lemon basil pesto recipe that matches with almonds. Haven't tried these yet, but they do look interesting by the ingredients, they make sense to me. Lemon basil can sub in for sweet basil in most recipes--the lemon is really more of an aroma with a little flavor, and it tends to be less anise than a lot of the sweet basils. I also like making a simple syrup with lemon basil and adding it to lemonade/limeade.

    Cinnamon basil is good in Mexican type dishes--also for something like ice cream where the flavor can stand out. For me, the flavor doesn't sub for a sweet basil, but try a little and see what your taste buds prefer.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Pesto Recipes link

  • CaraRose
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    The lemon is lemon dani, I think that's a lemon sweet. :)

    Oooo Balloonflower, thanks for that link! I've been trying to find a thai basil pesto recipe. Saw one that looked awesome in spring and then lost it.

  • tishtoshnm Zone 6/NM
    10 years ago

    I like to add cinnamon basil to Asian styple marinades, mix it into fried rice, add to Asian style rice noodle salads, tossed with grilled vegetables, part of a dressing for a coleslaw with rice vinegar, etc., etc.

  • nickl
    10 years ago

    One more thing. If you ever reach the point where you have too much basil - of any kind or variety -and the season is starting to wind down, basil freezes very well. It loses essentially none of its flavor during freezing, so you can use the frozen in almost any cooked dish that calls for basil.

    We freeze ours in 1-quart freezer bags so it takes up less space.

    "Sweet Dani" is a hybrid of sweet basil and hoary basil or kemangi, so it's intermediate between the two.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Basil Variety: Sweet Dani

    This post was edited by nickl on Wed, Jul 24, 13 at 10:45