Herbs and Spices Untitled Document

Spearmint

Rundmynta

Plant Description

Herb: Spearmint, (M. rotundifolia) is a genus of about 25 species (and many hundreds of varieties) of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae (Mint Family). Species within Mentha have a subcosmopolitan distribution across Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and North America.

Season:
You can begin to pick fresh young leaves as early as mid May.

Uses in Cooking:

Spearmint should only be used when fresh leaves are available. Perfect as a tea. It is used in fruit desserts and is good with young fresh vegetables such as carrots, green beans and parsnip.
The cultivar Mentha spicata 'Nana', the Nana mint of Morocco, possesses a clear, pungent, but mild aroma and is an essential ingredient of Touareg Tea.

Possible Substitutes:

Other mint varieties

How it comes:

Spice Mixes

Spearmint leaves can be used whole, chopped, dried and ground, frozen, preserved in salt, sugar, sugar syrup, alcohol, oil, or dried.

Other Uses:

Spearmint like Peppermint is sometimes regarded as 'the world's oldest medicine', with archaeological evidence placing its use at least as far back as ten thousand years ago. Peppermint, like many spices and herbs, is believed to have medicinal properties when consumed. It is said that it helps against upset stomachs, inhibits the growth of certain bacteria, and can help soothe and relax muscles when inhaled or applied to the skin.
Mint leaves are often used by many campers to repel mosquitoes. It is also said that extracts from mint leaves have a particular mosquito-killing capability.
Mint oil is also used as an environmentally-friendly insecticide for its ability to kill some common pests like wasps, hornets, ants and cockroaches.