Epazote

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SatNavSaysStraightOn

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I'm currently compiling a list of herbs & spices I don't have and refreshing my existing spices and have come across Epazote. I don't even know how to pronounce it, let alone know what to use it for. The literature I have suggest to use it in a similar manner to oregano.
I see the MG bought some as a live plant (New herbs) and Burt Blank mentions it with a recipe but I note that the recipe itself doesn't contain it (Croatian Army Beans).

So what can I use it for? Is it interchangable with summer or winter savoury. I have the latter growing vigourously in my garden but I'm alway interested in new dishes or way to use things.

Epazote Mexican Herb Leaves
Epazote, is a traditional Mexican Herb where the leaves are used in a similar way to oregano.

Other Common Names
American wormseed, goosefoot, Jerusalem parsley, Jesuit's tea, Mexican tea, paico, (formerly known as Chenopodium ambrosioides). Botanical Name: (Dysphania ambrosioides)
Description & Use

Epazote has a pleasant “mixed herbs” flavour, and is a popular ingredient in soups, bean dishes and tacos in the cooking of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. It features in many Mexican recipes, especially tacos and traditional pit roasts.
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Its a lovely herb much used in Mexican dishes. The plant I have 'sort of' comes up every year but with not many leaves. Its a difficult taste to describe and not really like any other herb: resinous with a hint of tarragon (anise) is the nearest I can say. Its particularly wonderful with beans and also with chilli in any vegetable stew. Also in egg dishes. I've used it on pizza where it really makes its mark. Its a bold herb. Much bolder than oregano I would say. You won't regret it if you grow it.

I'm not sure how it compares to Winter savoury as I haven't had any of that in years and can't recall...
 
I´ve had it growing in the garden here and it reproduces like wildfire. It´s a very popular herb in Mexico and is used with meat and vegetables. It´s pronounced "Eh-pa-zo-tay" - all vowel sounds in Spanish are short. Typical dishes might be sweetcorn with epazote, mushroom soup with epazote, or frijoles (black beans, red beans, any beans!) with epazote.
It´s difficult to describe the flavour, but according to Gernot Katzer´s Spice Pages it tastes like: "People would often compare it with (in no particular order) citrus, petroleum, savory, mint or putty. I think it smells like epazote."
 
It is common in Southern Mexican cooking. Not so much in Border Mexican and TexMex. Chef Rick Bayless uses it frequently, so look him up.

Pronounced -- Eh-pah-zoh-tay. that's the best I could come up with on the first syllable -- think about it as the way Canadians finish most sentences, eh. :D The third syllable (zoh) rhymes with toe.

CD
 
karadekoolaid said:
It´s difficult to describe the flavour, but according to Gernot Katzer´s Spice Pages it tastes like: "People would often compare it with (in no particular order) citrus, petroleum, savory, mint or putty. I think it smells like epazote."
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Yes - I definitely get the notes of petroleum. And yes its a unique aroma.

Thinking about this I think I have a tin of dried epazote somewhere which I've never used. I may experiment.
 
karadekoolaid said:
I beg to differ - but Spanish vowels are all short. The third syllable rhymes with "hot".
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Trouble is that I believe Mexican in American gets pronounced slightly differently. I mean (probably) that those Mexicans living in he USA have adapted a bit. I had a discussion about how to pronounce taco with caseydog. At least I think it was 'taco'. His (Mexican) pronunciation was different from that I'd heard in cooking videos shot in Mexico in the native language. In the end I thought it not worth arguing about!
 
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You´re right, and excuse me for being a bit pedantic! A native Spanish speaker would always pronounce vowel sounds "short": cat, pet, kit,hot,but. And that´s why Spanish speakers often get raised eyebrows when they say peas, sheets, fork - with looooong vowel sounds!
Sorry for that ,caseydog - no offence meant and I hope none taken.
 
karadekoolaid said:
You´re right, and excuse me for being a bit pedantic! A native Spanish speaker would always pronounce vowel sounds "short": cat, pet, kit,hot,but. And that´s why Spanish speakers often get raised eyebrows when they say peas, sheets, fork - with looooong vowel sounds!
Sorry for that ,caseydog - no offence meant and I hope none taken.
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No problem. My Italian name has an "O" in it, and everyone pronounces is wrong, so as a result, my family has adapted over the lat 100 years and we often pronounce it wrong. But, Texas is full of Mexicans, and they usually pronounce my name correctly.

Most of my Mexican pronunciations come from being surrounded by Mexicans in Texas. I say what my Mexican friends say. I have a friend named Carlos, who was born and raised in Mexico, and I help him with his English, and he helps me with Mexican Spanish -- which is a bit different from Spanish in Spain, BTW.

As for taco (MG), most Brits on TV and YouTube say "tack-oh," rhyming with back or hack, and that is just plain wrong. :p:

CD
 
caseydog said:
No problem. My Italian name has an "O" in it, and everyone pronounces is wrong, so as a result, my family has adapted over the lat 100 years and we often pronounce it wrong. But, Texas is full of Mexicans, and they usually pronounce my name correctly.

Most of my Mexican pronunciations come from being surrounded by Mexicans in Texas. I say what my Mexican friends say. I have a friend named Carlos, who was born and raised in Mexico, and I help him with his English, and he helps me with Mexican Spanish -- which is a bit different from Spanish in Spain, BTW.

As for taco (MG), most Brits on TV and YouTube say "tack-oh," rhyming with back or hack, and that is just plain wrong. :p:

CD
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I dropped out of this debate before - but videos I've seen from Mexico (not American videos) pronounce it 'tack'. As karadekoolaid said, Spanish vowels are short. But its not really important so long as we all know what it means. :)
 
Morning Glory said:
I dropped out of this debate before - but videos I've seen from Mexico (not American videos) pronounce it 'tack'. As karadekoolaid said, Spanish vowels are short. But its not really important so long as we all know what it means. :)
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Okay thanks. I'll let all of my Mexican friends know they are pronouncing Taco wrong. :okay: Boy, are they going to feel silly.:D

CD
 
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