Cooking with Fresh Parsley – Kalyn's Kitchen

I think parsley is an herb that people should appreciate more, and here are my tips and recipes for cooking with fresh parsley! In this post you will find lots of tips on growing parsley, and a little bit of the reasons why I love parsley so much! And for anyone who loves parsley, here are 36 great recipes using parsley.

PIN cooking with parsley to find it later!

Although I grew up with a mom who would nibble a garnish of parsley off her plate when we ate at restaurants, it was only into adulthood that I developed a true appreciation for this grassy-flavored herb. Now I can’t get enough of it!

Some chefs love the flat-leaf Italian parsley and ignore the curly kind, but I love both, and in fact prefer the curly parsley in some salads as it adds an interesting texture.

In the summer I like to use parsley with Fresh mint, which I think brings out the flavor of both! And even though I grow parsley in my herb garden, I think one of the great things about parsley is that it’s inexpensive in the grocery store all year long, which makes it easy to keep cooking with parsley all winter when you want a little bit of fresh herb flavor.

Tips for growing parsley:

In the garden Parsley is a biennialwhich means the plant will produce leaves for two years, although production in the first year is sometimes much lower.
I find it relatively easy to grow, and if you neglect your plants a bit in the fall they will drop their seeds keeping your parsley plants popping up here year after year.
If you’re starting your parsley from purchased seeds, you’ll have to be patient because the seeds take a long time to germinate (although soaking them overnight before planting can help a lot.)
Parsley plants do best when pruned during the season to remove dead leaves and seeds.
There are two different types of parsley, Flat leaf and curly parsleyand they grow in the same way.

What does fresh parsley taste like?

I think most people who enjoy parsley would agree that it has a bit of an herbal flavor to it, but in a good way! I have seen the flavor described as “mild bitter”. But most of all i think it’s a fresh, herbal flavor that really pairs with many foods.

What foods come with the flavor of fresh parsley?

In many parts of the world, parsley is mixed with other leafy herbs and eaten as a salad green, and I have come to love salads that contain a large amount of parsley. I also like it very much as an ingredient in ground meat dishes, soups or stews. I think parsley works especially well with tomatoes, cucumbers, dried beans, beef, chicken, lemon, garlic, mushrooms, peppers, and squash, but it goes well with many other flavors.

Parsley recipes from Kalyn’s Kitchen and my food blogging friends:

This is my favourite Tuna salad with white beans It’s a classic recipe that I reduced the carbs with more tuna, added celery, and used less beans!

Zucchini with cheese with garlic and parsley A quick and delicious way to cook zucchini and this is a perfect recipe for parsley lovers!

Even before I had a blog my friend Massoud taught me to make this Middle Eastern tomato saladAnd perhaps this was the beginning of my appreciation for parsley!

I think parsley and feta are a great combination and I love that in this one Cucumber salad with parsley and feta!

Tuna salad with cucumber, tomato, parsley and mint It’s a delicious summer salad and it’s kind of my favorite tomato salad in the Middle East, with the addition of tuna.

Almond tabbouleh salad It uses almonds, parsley, mint, and less bulgur to make a more carb version of this tabbouleh salad!

Grilled sausage and summer squash with lemon and herbs It’s a perfect summer dish and a perfect recipe for using up some parsley!

this Balila Salad (Middle Eastern Bean Salad) A bit of a splurge on carbs, but I love this combination of flavors so much!

Grilled Turkish burger from the Middle East It’s a recipe where the amount is way more than the portions, and if you think ground turkey can’t be exciting, you have to try this recipe!

For years I was a huge fan of him Lebanese fattoush salad And this is something I make every summer when I have fresh mint and parsley in the herb garden. And of course, I use low-carb pita chips for this salad favorite!