Bouquet garni
A garnished bouquet is a bundle of herbs, typically encased in a cheesecloth bag or tied with twine, placed in a stew or soup for adding flavoring and aroma. Traditionally, it is comprised of parsley (or parsley stalks), a few sprigs of thyme and a bay leaf.
Ingredients
- Kaffir lime leaf, cilantro, and a sliver of ginger root
- Parsley, thyme, bay leaf
- Kaffir lime leaves, galangal, and lemongrass
- Rosemary, basil, oregano
- Bay leaf, lemon peel, and cilantro
- Thyme, bay leaf, and peppercorns
- Tarragon, bay leaf, and pink peppercorns
- Thyme, celery stalk, and bay leaf
Sachet d’épices
A sachet is similar, in that it also includes herbs and spices, but also small ingredients that are too tricky to remove from the dish after cooking, such as peppercorns. So they are wrapped in cheesecloth (a small sack in appearance) and tied off with twine.
Sort of like a teabag, it flavors the dish. This sack is then removed once all the flavor has been released and prior to serving.
Ingredients
- A good way to use dried herbs if fresh are unavailable
- Parsley stems, thyme, peppercorns, bay leaf
- Parsley stems, thyme, rosemary
- Spiced wine: cloves, cinnamon sticks, lemons slices
Process
Gather together the ingredients, put it in the middle of a small cut (~8″x6″) of cheesecloth or muslin, and tie the bag closed with a piece of cooking twine.
Make the twine long enough to suspend the bag in the simmering liquid while it is tied to a pot handle. This will make it easier to remove when done. Other people tend to just plop the bag into the broth and let it cook, fishing it out with tongs since it often gets really hot in the cooking process.
Tips + Tricks
- Pay attention to how much herbs, seasons, spices you add
- Peppercorns and bay leaves can overpower if too much is added
- You can use larger tea strainers, so long as ingredients fit
- Use only parsley stems, if leaves are used liquid turns greenish
- You can bind the ingredients with leek leaves
- Also coffee filters will work.