Garlic, as you know, is very good for us. So what natural herbal remedies are garlic chives good for? Good question...I grow them because I like the smell of them, the taste in soups and the pretty flowers. I never thought of them as a herbal remedy before so I did some research and found out quite a lot about chives.
They have a history going back over 5,000 years. Not as a natural herbal remedy but as a culinary herb. Used by the ancient Chinese and Greeks, they earned a place in European gardens in the sixth century and have been used in gardens ever since.
In medieval times, they believed chives had magical powers to ward off disease and evil influences and most people hung a bunch of chives in their houses. Chives dry beautifully and garlic chives make your house smell a little like garlic but they don’t over power.Try using it in your teenager’s room to keep evil away. If it doesn’t work then at least their room will smell nice.
As a natural herbal remedy, chives are related to the onion family and have an oil that is rich in antiseptic and helps lower blood pressure but you need mass quantities of chives for this but ever little bit helps.
As a culinary herb you can’t go wrong with chives. I like garlic chives the best but I also grow regular chives. I like how they bloom all the time or at least here in Florida they bloom all year long. They’re very tough and handle freezes and droughts well. They grow for years and need very little tending other than keeping weeds away.
I was making the recipe below and it called for parsley but I didn’t have any fresh, the caterpillars got them, so I used my garlic chives instead. Oh, man! What a great taste! And the smell they created had my neighbors asking me what I was cooking.
I cooked the patties on the Bar-B-Q, normally I don’t but I wanted to see if they tasted different than cooking them on the stove. They don’t but watch out for the neighbors if you cook these patties outside. Especially if you use garlic chives instead of parsley.
I make up a big batch and cook all the patties up and throw them in the freezer so I can have them whenever I want without going to all the trouble of making them up every time. They’re not hard to make them, just time consuming. It’s quite a time saver and they freeze very well. So make a big batch and freeze some – if they last that long.
I made this last batch on the Bar-B-Q with some friends over and of course, the neighbors came over to see what smelled so good and they ate the whole batch! When I make them with parsley they’re still very good but with garlic chive they are fantastic! So I’ll make them with garlic chives instead of parsley from now on, that way the caterpillars will have something to eat.
My parsley doesn’t last very long once the Swallowtail butterflies start having babies. They do like parsley to feed on and will eat the entire plant right down to the roots. So beware of Swallowtail butterflies and plant extra parsley for yourself.Try this recipe using garlic chive instead of parsley or make a big batch and split it and try both. I think you’ll like the garlic chives the best but leave me a comment letting me know which one you like the best.
This is the original recipe and I have tried different herbs in place of the parsley but the garlic chives have been the best so far.
Spicy Chicken Patties with Horseradish Aïoli
Aioli (ay-OH-lee) is a garlic mayonnaise popular in the Provence region of France. It’s used as a condiment on meats and vegetables. Very good stuff!
Chicken patties ingredients:
2 slices of whole wheat bread
1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken
¼ cup fresh parsley or chives
3 tablespoon mayonnaise (low-fat or regular, your choice)
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
¼ teaspoon salt
2 egg whites
2 teaspoon canola oil
Now to put them together:
Put the bread in a blender or food processor and pulse it 10 times and measure out 1 cup of bread crumbs. Save or freeze the rest for something else.
Place chicken in blender or food processor and pulse until ground. Combine chicken, parsley and the rest of ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.
You can make the patty any size you want. I usually make them about 1 ½ inch wide and ½ in thick. This size makes great sandwiches for little hands.
Heat oil or butter in skillet over medium heat. Add patties and cook 7 minutes on each side, again depending on how big you make them.
You can serve them as the main course with salad, vegetables or soup; make a sandwich or use a hamburger bun. They’re good any which way you serve them!
To make the Aïoli:
Combine --
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons horseradish
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon salt
Mix well. Serve with chicken patties.
You can make more than 2 tablespoons of Aïoli -- it stores very well in the refrigerator.
Change to recipe:
This is the base recipe but you can substitute many different ingredients. This is what I have used when I don’t have all the ingredients or just want a different taste depending on my mood.
Use white bread or 1 cup of bread crumbs for the whole wheat bread – the bread helps hold the patty together. If you want the patty dryer then add more than one cup of bread crumbs.
Use any herb you want for the fresh parsley or chives – garlic chives are great!
Use sour cream or yogurt for the mayonnaise – any flavor you want
Use one whole egg or ¼ cup flax tea – the egg holds the mixture together
I use real butter for the canola oil because it gives it a better taste. You use the oil to fry the patties.
Use an Italian, African, or Middle Easterner spice in place of Cajun spice.
Use any amount of salt you want.
If you like it spicier, like me, then add more Cajun seasoning and black pepper.
Cook them in a skillet on the stove or use the bar-b-q BUT watch out for your neighbors!
If you don’t have Cajun spice here’s how to make it:
Home-Made Cajun Spice Mix
Parts can be any size you want – tablespoons, teaspoons, cups, quarts, or gallons. Just keep the proportions correct. I usually make this up by the tablespoon. It last me about a month but I use it a lot.
Ingredients:
3 parts paprika
2 parts onion powder
2 parts garlic powder
2 parts dried oregano leaves
2 parts dried sweet basil
1 parts dried thyme leaves
1 parts black or white pepper or both
1 parts cayenne pepper – add as much as you like hot!
Mix all together and use on any meat or vegetables...one food it’s very good on is eggs, whether they are scramble, over easy, or made into a quiche, this spice mixture is Great on them!
This recipe makes a wonderful “Gift in a Jar” for those who like hot stuff!...
Well, even though garlic chives aren’t the best natural herbal remedy they do make food taste great.
Leave me a comment when your try these chicken patties and let me know which herb you like best.
Enjoy!
