How to Use Lemon Verbena in Cooking

Lemon verbena is an herb that is native to Chile and Peru, and it can grow as much as five feet in one growing season, up to almost 15 feet tall. It will retain its scent for years when dried, so it is popular in cooking and as a potpourri ingredient. It can be used for flavoring a wide range of food from meats to cakes, as well as creating tea and other beverages. Lemon verbena has therapeutic properties and has been said to relieve discomfort from stomach ailments, provide stress relief, and even help even out skin tone and cellulite. When using it as a fresh herb, mince it very fine, or add it whole and remove before serving.

Instructions

Dry out fresh lemon verbena by chopping it up and laying it out on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Put the oven on the lower setting and bake it until the lemon verbena is crispy, on average about 2 hours. Remove it from the oven and crumble it into smaller pieces into containers that have secure caps for storing. Drying out lemon verbena is ideal if you use it often but don't want to have to keep buying it fresh.

Use lemon verbena in place of real lemons for lemon zest in recipes (use fresh lemon verbena for this). This is most widely used for seafood or baking dishes. It can also be added to any fruit dish, such as fresh fruit salads or jams.

Lemon verbena can be used in any dish where lemon might be used, such as scallops, fish, chicken dishes, salad dressings, pasta, and rice.

Create a lemon verbena sugar by burying six to seven lemon verbena leaves in a cup of sugar that is in a covered container. Let it sit for about a week before using it, so the flavor can become integrated into the sugar. Use this sugar to top muffins, cookies, cakes, pies, fruit, or sprinkle on the top of muffin or cupcake batter before baking.

Pair lemon verbena with flavors such as mint and vanilla in dessert baking. Add lemon verbena leaves to the bottom of the pan under cake batter before baking, but keep in mind you must remove the leaves before serving.

Steep lemon verbena leaves in hot water to create an aromatic and mildly sedative herbal tea. It can be hot or cold tea.

Create a lemon verbena herb butter by combining five tablespoons of any of the herb with one stick of softened unsalted butter. Mix thoroughly. Keep it in a sealed container in the refrigerator. You can melt this butter over vegetables, poultry, or fish, or spread on fresh bread.

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