Todd Porter and Diane Cu-Porter/Sunset Magazine
Spring is here and if you’re looking to add herbs to your garden outside of the traditional rosemary and mint, try these Vietnamese herbs that are easy to grow and can be used in a myriad of dishes. For Vietnamese Americans, these are familiar herbs. For White On Rice Couple blog writers Todd Porter and Diane Cu-Porter, these are the five they would recommend for adventurous home gardeners.
Vietnamese balm is one of many herbs you can add to your garden to give it a Southeast Asian flair. (Photo: Todd Porter and Dianne Cu-Porter)
Vietnamese balm leaves- green in color with serrated edges. It has a bright lemon flavor and are delicious in egg rolls. Vietnamese coriander is another popular herb also known as Rau Răm. This herb has a spicy, musky flavor and is popular in Vietnamese chicken salad and balut (if you can stomach them!)
Vietnamese Perilla, or Tiá Tô has beautiful green leaves with purple on the other side, and are fantastic in soup dishes. Another herb standout sawtooth herb, aka Mexican coriander or Ngò Gai. They are a staple in pho and other soups. The final recommendation to round out your herb garden is the Vietnamese fish mint, or Diếp Cá. It has a strong fish smell to it but can really make certain dishes standout.
To find out more about the herbs and how they taste, click here:
