Seeds, seeds and more seeds.

The coriander which has been wonderful this year is setting seed now and over the last week or so we've been collecting the seeds as they ripen and go brown.  But now we need that space for other plants so yesterday I cut off all the heads into a large bucket,  took out the plants and dug it all over.  During the day John started de-seeding the heads and putting the completely dry ones to one side for storing in the seed store,  and putting the not so ripe ones separately.  It's a  dusty boring job and so he did a bit,  did something else,  but kept going back to the bucket and separating more.  At some point - really bored by now - he wondered what the green seeds would taste like as you can only buy dried for planting or cooking with. 

Wonderful!   The texture of a green peppercorn but with a delicious fresh coriander flavour,  not too strong,  a lovely burst of  coriander juiciness.   So off I went to the other coriander bed which was planted later and is only just finishing flowering and I cut all the green seeds off.   A quick google for fresh green seeds and their uses comes up with  'freezes well,  or put in brine for a couple weeks when they will taste even better'  and use whenever you need that extra flavour that fresh coriander gives food.

We haven't yet managed to grow it all year round,  it tends to bolt in the summer,  and although we have dried leaf,  that doesn't have anywhere near the flavour of fresh.  So this is maybe the answer.

The really green seeds I put in the freezer on a baking sheet till hard then into a bag,  the almost green but definitely not dry ones (middle box)  have filled 2 small jars and are brined,  the rest are dry and for planting. 

Talking of dried herbs,  this week we've been drying both mint and sage in the drier,  the mint takes about half a day, the sage a full day.  But both these herbs are much stronger flavoured when dry which is why we find dried coriander so strange as it seems not to have much at all.  And it's not just shop bought leaf that is like that as we dry our excess too with the same result.  Odd.

Maybe someone out there knows why??   If so, do tell us.