Nasty Sage

[Roger Burton]

Hi chaps, I wanted to pimp up some sausage meat, found some Sage in a local shop (imported from Italy - I should have known) got it home, added it to chopped onion and some oil but it smelt and tasted "not good" I don't know how to describe it but it wasn't a nice herby aroma (I grow Sage), I guess it was reaaly old and had gone "rancid" so this is a question and a warning (it was 99p wasted) !

 

[Morning Glory]

Hi chaps, I wanted to pimp up some sausage meat, found some Sage in a local shop (imported from Italy - I should have known) got it home, added it to chopped onion and some oil but it smelt and tasted "not good" I don't know how to describe it but it wasn't a nice herby aroma (I grow Sage), I guess it was reaaly old and had gone "rancid" so this is a question and a warning (it was 99p wasted) !

Strange to import sage from Italy when we grow it so easily here - mine is in the garden right now and is available all year round.

 

[MrsDangermouse]

Strange to import sage from Italy when we grow it so easily here - mine is in the garden right now and is available all year round.

I agree - sage grows so easily here why would anyone import it? I actually end up throwing most of our's away....we can't use it quick enough to keep the plant a reasonable size!

I'm also not sure how a herb could go rancid? If fresh it might dry out a bit and both fresh and dried herbs can lose their flavour when they get a bit old, but I've not heard of them going rancid or having an "off" taste. Roger Burton this may be a stupid question....but are you sure it was actually sage? Maybe the shop mis-labelled it?

 

[Morning Glory]

I'm also not sure how a herb could go rancid? If fresh it might dry out a bit and both fresh and dried herbs can lose their flavour when they get a bit old, but I've not heard of them going rancid or having an "off" taste.

I was thinking the same. The only other thing which occurred to me was the question of quantities. Fresh sage is one of those herbs which can taste very bitter and overpowering if you use too much.

.we can't use it quick enough to keep the plant a reasonable size!

I just have a 'bush' of it. It gets cut back every so often and its not the prettiest of bushes, but it keeps on going.

 

[MypinchofItaly]

I also was wondering what does it mean “rancid”.. and “I should have known”.
maybe the package was damaged and some liquid fell inside? I think it would have been noticed anyway.

Are you sure it was the sage or maybe were the onions?

 

[TastyReuben]

Are you sure it was the sage or maybe were the onions?

That was my first thought.

 

[rascal]

Bucket loads of sage here too, all year round. Looking for parsley the other day I found about enough sage to last a life time. Never seen rancid sage. Maybe just a bad batch???

Russ

 

[Roger Burton]

Thanks one and all - what an excellent response, we did have a Sage bush but it died and I was going to replace it in the Spring. I was stupid to use the word "rancid". I couldn't think of anything better, it just smelt "off", even before cooking. It was Sage (see pic) if I need some again I'll only buy one of those little grow pots (couldn't find any on this occasion - good of you all to take the time x roger

 

[MypinchofItaly]

Thanks one and all - what an excellent response, we did have a Sage bush but it died and I was going to replace it in the Spring. I was stupid to use the word "rancid". I couldn't think of anything better, it just smelt "off", even before cooking. It was Sage (see pic) if I need some again I'll only buy one of those little grow pots (couldn't find any on this occasion - good of you all to take the time x rogerView attachment 36439

Ok, we got it is from Italy.
It looks to me a normal sage, anyway, good luck next time.

 

[MrsDangermouse]

The grey leaves look to me like they have been damaged before harvesting - could be a fungal disease or frost damage, or simply that they were too old and died before harvesting. We sometimes get the same on our plant but I don't use those ones! I'm surprised it was packaged up like that - I'd expect to receive only healthy leaves if I was buying herbs