Content
Savory is an annual herb that has been used as a spice for a long time. As early as the ninth century, monks brought it to Central Europe. Its delicate aroma and pleasant taste have made savory popular and widely used.
The properties of the plant are used not only in cooking as a spice, but also in folk medicine, since the healing properties of this spice have been proven. It is worth knowing what the plant looks like, where it grows and how it is used in order to avoid mistakes in cultivation and use.
What is this herb "savory"
As you can see in the photo, savory is a herb, with a highly branched stem with a lot of leaves and purple flowers. It is distinguished by spicy properties, strong aroma, pungency with a bitter aftertaste.
In American and European cooking, this versatile seasoning is used to enhance the flavor of soups, meat and vegetable dishes. Savory is native to the Mediterranean. There are about 30 plant species, but garden and mountain plants are most often used in cooking.
What does savory look like
The spicy herb belongs to the Yasnotkov family. The leaves of the plant are whole-edged, with short petioles. The flowers are bluish, pinkish or light purple. They are located in the axils of the leaves. Their calyx is regular, bell-shaped, and the corolla is two-lipped. The flower has four stamens, its stigma with diverging lobes.
Fruits are nuts, the shape of which can be round or ovoid.
Garden savory reaches a height of 70 cm, has a strongly branched stem, purple flowers. The herb has other names, besides the garden one - chobr, sheber, fragrant, summer, saturea hortensis.
The mountain species grows up to 60 cm, has pubescent stems, flowers are white-pink, 1 cm in diameter. The culture has a creeping and erect shape.
Mountain savory, in contrast to garden savory, has a more pungent taste, it is required much less for dishes, since it also has a stronger smell.
After drying, the spice retains a strong aroma, but after a year it disappears. The best ways to store the herb are to oil or freeze it.
What is another name for savory
The aromatic spice is widely used in the national cuisines of the world. It is difficult to imagine some dishes of the Balkan countries without savory. In Bulgaria, it is called chybritsa, which is put in soups, added to meat and fish dishes. In Georgia, this is kandari. Kharcho, canakhi are very beneficial when adding spice. The Moldavian name of the seasoning is chimbru, the Armenian name is citron, the Uzbek name is jambul.
Where grows
According to the description, savory prefers sandy loam or loamy loose, drained soils. In soils with neutral pH, it can provide increased volume of green mass with a brighter and richer taste. Grass spreads well on rocky slopes, on rocks.
The plant is cultivated as a garden plant, but often it runs wild and further spreads as a weed.
The savory plant (photo) is unpretentious in cultivation and care, undemanding to temperature conditions and soils.
In the conditions of the Moscow region, sowing of spicy herbs is carried out at the end of April in a greenhouse.After the soil has completely warmed up, the seedlings are planted in open ground. The planting site should be spacious, well lit, and free of weeds. The location in the shade of garden trees is not suitable for savory. The grass is decorative, so it can be used in landscape design.
The harvesting of raw materials is carried out immediately after the beginning of flowering.
The spice can be grown at home as a pot culture, on a windowsill or balcony. After cutting off the shoots, new, young ones soon grow on the bushes.
Under natural conditions, the spicy herb can be found in Central Asia, Turkey, in the South of Europe, in the Crimea.
The benefits and harms of savory for the body
The medicinal properties of this spice have been known since ancient times. In Germany and France, the garden species is officially recognized as a medicinal plant and is used as an antibacterial agent.
The benefits of savory for the body consist of a number of properties:
- antiseptic;
- antioxidant;
- mucolytic;
- carminative;
- stimulating digestion.
Spicy herbs are used in different forms: in the form of tea, infusion, inhalations, rinses, dry matter and essential oil.
Useful properties of garden savory are used for many pathologies:
- stomach cramps;
- diarrhea of an infectious nature;
- bronchitis
- tracheitis;
- laryngitis;
- with type 2 diabetes;
- stomatitis and gingivitis;
- baldness and dandruff;
- with itchy skin from insect bites.
In addition to medicinal properties, savory herb has contraindications for use. You can not use it for stomach and duodenal ulcers, atrial fibrillation, thyroid pathologies, cardiosclerosis, allergic reactions. Savory preparations are strictly prohibited during pregnancy, as they can cause uterine contraction and lead to miscarriage.
The mountain species contains an essential oil, the main component of which is carvacrol. Greens contain a lot of vitamins, phytoncides, and minerals. The medicinal properties of mountain savory are used in folk medicine for colitis, vomiting, enteritis, and digestive problems. The spicy herb also has a diaphoretic, diuretic, astringent effect on the body. Contraindications to the use of mountain savory concern those who have an individual intolerance and allergy to the product.
The use of savory in traditional medicine
Various medicinal forms are prepared from the spice plant.
Decoction for helminths
To prepare the broth, dried herb (30 g) is poured into 300 g of boiling water, insisted and drunk overnight. Savory taste is bitter. The tool helps with helminth infection.
Dry cough tea
To prepare tea for coughs, 15 g of dry savory herb must be poured with a glass of boiling water and insisted in a water bath. Take a sip every 15 minutes. Can be used with honey to enhance the effect.
Infusion for hypertension
Two tablespoons of dry herbs must be poured with 500 mg of boiling water and insisted for about an hour. After filtration, the agent should be applied 100 g four times a day in the initial form of hypertension.
Therapeutic baths for asthma and skin diseases
Insist 100 g of dry grass in a liter of boiling water for 30 minutes, strain and pour into a bath with warm water. Take a bath for about 30 minutes.
Inhalation
Savory essential oil is used for inhalation using a nebulizer. Inhalation of vapors helps to destroy pathogenic microbes.
Fresh herb for itching
When a fresh plant is rubbed into the site of an insect bite (bees, wasps, mosquitoes), itching, irritation and pain are relieved.
When using medicines in different forms, it is worth remembering not only about the beneficial properties, but also about the contraindications of savory, so as not to cause irreparable harm to health.
The use of savory herb in cooking
Spicy bitter taste and strong aroma of the spice is widely used in cooking. European and American cuisine cannot be complete without this versatile condiment. In Bulgaria, it is added to meat, fish, vegetables.In Germany, savory is an obligatory component of veal rolls, sauces, sausages, pies.
In many national cuisines, the herb is used for pickling and salting vegetables.
Dried leaves are added to white and colored beans, mushrooms. Thanks to the spice, many drinks acquire a rich invigorating taste.
What is this spice savory
The cheapness and ease of cultivation of the herb lead to its extraordinary popularity. The seasoning has found its application in folk medicine, cooking, cosmetology. The composition of the green mass includes:
- essential oils;
- vitamins;
- minerals.
The calorie content of savory is 272 kcal per 100 g of product.
Protein content - 6.8 g, carbohydrates - 24.1 g, fat - 6.1 g.
The plant contains vitamins A, B, C, PP. The content of calcium, iron, potassium, manganese, selenium in the spice is significant.
The bitter taste of the herb stimulates appetite, tea improves brain activity, gives vitality, relieves stress.
Savory is used alone and in combination with other spices - bay leaves, parsley, rosemary, basil. Due to the similarity of taste, the spice is in perfect harmony with the pepper. It is worth remembering that savory added to a mixture of seasonings in large quantities can overlap the taste of other ingredients.
Where savory is added
The spicy herb has found its application in cooking, the alcoholic beverage industry, and perfumery. On its basis, invigorating drinks are created, where yarrow and thyme are added. Such a product, in addition to tonic properties, also has a curative - hemostatic effect. Savory is added to the famous Bulgarian ketchup.
For dressing salads, it is recommended to prepare an infusion of spices in vegetable oil. This piece is suitable for any salad to which it imparts a spicy flavor.
Added to the dishes, savory herb leaves allow to preserve it longer due to the disinfection effect. Experts recommend putting spices in soups and other first courses at the very end of cooking, and when frying products, at the beginning of cooking.
It is believed that the savory herb planted next to legumes repels pests that threaten the harvest, and the substances that make up the green mass help in the fight against blackleg.
Research is being carried out to accelerate seed germination after treatment with essential oils obtained from the spice plant.
The use of savory in cosmetology
The essential oil obtained from the spice is a good remedy for alopecia. It is able to cook the first hair, strengthen the hair follicles. Doctors recommend preparations based on savory for skin problems - dermatitis, furunculosis, acne.
The cosmetic industry produces various forms and types of products with savory in the composition:
- massage oils;
- bath foam;
- Shower gel;
- Creams;
- air flavors.
Conclusion
Savory is a plant well known to mankind for a long time. Spicy grass is successfully used in many areas of life - medicine, cooking, cosmetology, agriculture, landscape design. If the measures are taken and used correctly, dishes with seasoning acquire a brighter taste, the treatment of many diseases proceeds more successfully, the garden area looks more beautiful and more comfortable. These factors are a significant reason for the spicy culture to find its place in the garden and vegetable garden.
