Recently I was out with Elliot, trailing him as he wandered the yard sniffing things. He ended up on the side of the house chasing lizards, and as I stood waiting for him to finish his game, I took in my surroundings since I rarely venture out to the side of the house. Apparently, my husband had decided to plant his herbs on the side of the house this year instead of the front of the house. I noticed that he had his yearly various pepper plants and several herbs, one of which I did not recognize.
Since the information card was stuck down in the soil next to the plant I reached down and plucked it out to see what in the world the pokey plant was. It said, "culantro". I stood for a moment reading and re-reading the card. What the hell is culantro kept playing over and over in my head like a stuck record. Seriously? The man heard culantro when I said cilantro? I supposed we were making progress in the communications department since he tells me he hears the ocean when I speak, but as I looked at the plant I was struck by the simple fact that I hadn't a clue what to use that herb in or if it was even an herb. Later that night I asked him WTF.
Me: "So what's with the culantro you planted outside?"
Tom: "You said that's what you wanted me to plant."
Me: "Uh, no, I said cilantro. With an "i"."
Tom: "That's what I planted."
Me: "No, you planted culantro."
Tom: "You read it wrong. I planted cilantro."
Me: "No, you planted culantro, with a "u". It doesn't look a thing like cilantro."
Tom: "Are you sure?"
Me: "Oh, my god, are you serious? I told you how much I love cilantro. You don't think I know what it looks like? You don't think I know how to spell it? You got something I've never seen before or heard of before, but it isn't cilantro."
Tom: "What is it then?"
Me: "Culantro. I was going to look it up, but I forgot."
Tom: "Are you serious? I can't believe that. I couldn't find cilantro anywhere and then I saw it at this store and I was excited that they had it. I read the card. I thought it said cilantro. I can't believe I got the wrong plant. Maybe it's the same thing."
Me: "I just told you it doesn't look anything like cilantro. And Publix sells cilantro in the plant form so I'm not sure why you had so much trouble. But trust me when I tell you that what you are growing out in our yard is not cilantro!"
Eventually I got around to researching culantro. It wasn't easy. I typed it into Yahoo search and although it finally popped up it was far down the list behind cilantro. However, culantro is a herb and the article I found was titled, "Culantro: A Much Utilized, Little Understood Herb". No kidding. I did, however, learn some things about this herb we have growing on the side of our house.
- Culantro is an herb native to Mexico, Central and South America.
- The plant is rich in calcium, iron, carotene, and riboflavin.
- It has has a strong, aromatic scent much like cilantro, but its taste is much stronger than cilantro.
- Its harvested leaves are widely used as a food flavoring and seasoning herb for meat and many other foods.
- Its medicinal value include its use as a tea for flu, diabetes, constipation, and fevers.
- The plant looks very different than cilantro.
- One of its most popular use is in chutneys as an appetite stimulant.
- The nickname fitweed is derived from its supposedly anti-convulsant property.
- Large quantities are exported from Puerto Rico and Trinidad.
- It grows best in shaded areas.
Next up will be researching recipes that use culantro. If it makes it that far.
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