Chive Talkin’: Spice Girl

Basic stuff, right? Chives will do well inside, if they get some light and you keep the soil well watered. Add some compost or coffee grounds to their pot as extra nutrients, they’ll love that. Indoor chives can be used throughout the winter; just keep snipping them down to about two inches, and they will regenerate. Thin them out if a clump gets too thick, and spread them out a bit. Anyone at your friendly neighborhood garden center should be delighted to help you assemble what you need to grow chives.

The only way to enjoy chives is fresh—dried chives have little or no taste (and they aren’t very pretty). However, one fantastic thing about chives, is that they freeze superbly. Snip your freshly-grown chivelets, and slip them into a freezer bag to enjoy at your leisure. (Thaw them first, natch!)

Add some chutzpah to your butter or cream cheese with chives, sprinkle them into your salad, drape them over your lox, fry them up with your hamburgers. It’s a great way to zest up your cooking. Chives ain’t just for baked potatoes, anymore!


Related Article:

Spice Girl: The Pleasures of Pepper, Learn to Love the Grind!


Patricia Kositzky, the Spice Girl, will be presenting a series of articles about spices and herbs. If you have a condiment you’d like discussed or examined, please send an email to the editor: midori@realgirlsmedia.com.

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