Had to smile that you were "dismayed" to see the Tarragon reappearing. Mostly, people have difficulty growing it. But isn't that always the way, something you're not fussed about always grows well, sometimes too well.

Here's a quote from a herb book:

"Tarragon has rarely been used as anything but a culinary herb, though at one stage is was recommended as a cure for snakebites. Good tarragon is so difficult to grow and so wonderful to taste that it would be a pity to waste it on anything but gluttony!"

Apart from the usual vinegar the only thing I can suggest is to make tarragon butter. Just soften some butter, add chopped tarragon, roll it into a log and freeze until you want to use it. Good with chicken or steak. Or you could make Bearnaise Sauce.

Put the dried herb in a plain bread mix. Tarragon also goes well with veal cooked with peaches (if that's to your taste - I lost the recipe ages ago).

I love the flavour of tarragon but I am not as fortunate as you Mrs B, I can't seem to get it to grow well. Will be giving it another go when the plants are in the nurseries again.

Use the herb butter under the chicken skin. I can't grow Tarragon either but picked up a Mexican Tarragon. If it grows like the Mexican Sage it will be a lovely specimen plant.

a little Tarragon in green beans adds a different piquancy. I add bit like one would add mint to peas. ATB teddy,J

I had to laugh too, my tarragon died last year, and I gave it no attention too! I like it a lot with chicken, in stuffing or as herb butter as already mentioned.

OK! Great ideas for cooking...
How do you grow it?
Ignore it and it grows...ignore it and it dies...difficult to grow...
Is it worth attempting?
I saw some Russian tarragon at the nursery this afternoon.
Is that better or worse than the French tarragon?
Does it like full sun, good drainage, part shade, lots of water?
If I'm going to get adventurous with my chicken stuffing I need to know where to start.
My last adventurous stuffing was thyme and sage with lots of sage flowers for added colour - pretty until I cooked it.
Come on Anna, you must have some herbal lore to minimize tarragon death?
Please?

Wendy

Hope this helps....though I should state at the outset that often there are always exceptions to the rule, as with any gardening I guess. Sometimes a plant will grow in conditions other than that which is the ideal as prescribed by the experts.

Tarragon needs well-drained moist soil (prone to root rot in heavy & wet soils). It likes full sun or in hot areas partial shade (though it does not grow well in hot areas as it needs a few months of cool weather but if grown in hot areas it needs to be watered regularly & will be short-lived).

Now this is what I mean about exceptions to the rule. Some books state that it dislikes other plants around it and humidity. Where I have it growing there are also several other herbs growing around it and it is doing fine.

Regarding the Russian Tarragon, this is much inferior to the French Tarragon and the flavour is to some bitter. There is another plant known as Winter Tarragon or Mexican Tarragon, not actually a member of the tarragon family but the marigold family (Tagetes lucida), the flavour of which is a little more like the French Tarragon but a little spicier. This plant is a perennial, grows about 2'.

Hi everyone
thanks for your suggestions. Read a piece in our local newspaper last night "Tarragon comes as french or russian - Russian being hardier and french more fragrant. Hates wet feet, good in bernaise sauce, chicken and vinegars". Well that's that, I obviously have the Russian variety :o)

It's quite tall and sits in a 12" pot under a gum on the western side of the house, jammed in behind my cement troughs which filled with herbs I love. I suppose if I treat it nice it will peg it, so I'd best continue to throw some water on it now and then.
Wendy - sage is really powerful stuff and you only need a very small amount to flavour anything. It tastes quite bitter if to much is used or in your case the flower heads.
thanks again Mrs B

Thanks Anna! Maybe I'll get adventurous and take the tarragon test.

No problem with the stuffing...very yummy.
Impressed my friends who think I'm a cooking genius! Little do they know. They get impressed when I cook a lamb roast with rosemary and garlic, because I pick the rosemary from the garden. Although I do admit to a knack with crispy roast potatoes.
Lots of sage flowers because I was stuffing three chickens. My friends have six kids.
Have you got inspired to use your tarragon Mrs B?

Wendy

Tarragon tea is great before bedtime if you cant sleep. It is also said to stimulate the appetite. Regards Beckles

I have been digging around and found the label.......it's Mexican Tarragon?????????

French Tarragon is the real McCoy. I find Mexican is almost as good and easier to grow. Russian has far less 'oomph' than either of the others.

It goes well with any white meat. It appears quite regularly in recipes from some of the trendier chefs of the moment (Nigel Slater, Jamie Oliver et al). You haven't lived until you try pork fillet stuffed with tarragon and gorgonzola. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.......

Pork with Tarragon hmmmmmmmm!! not so sure about the Gorgonzola though, might have to do a taste test first. Not a fan of the soft cheeses or really strong ones for that matter either.

They are used in sauces, salads, soups, egg dishes, meats, vinegars and salad dressings, vegetable and fish dishes. The leaves do not dry well and are best used fresh. If overcooked, the taste becomes bitter. Chew on a tarragon leaf to ease a toothache. I love to add a sprig to the pan when frying steaks, and usually make it into a herb butter for use with steak, chicken or other meats. Add some to your next mixture for stuffing mushrooms, it goes superbly with potatoes, with tomatoes, in salad dressings and mayonaise, in dumplings with stew, try a little Rose Tarragon vinegar with cabbage. It's a classic in Fines Herbes,a combination of parsley, chervil, chives and tarragon in equal quantities. Frequently used in egg dishes, especially omelettes. Some recipes below, and I have plenty more.

Baked Eggs with Tarragon
3 sprigs tarragon
1/3 cup cream
salt and pepper to taste
4 eggs

Chop 3 teaspoons of the tarragon leaves. Put the remainder of the tarragon in a small pan with the cream and bring to the boil. Remove from heat, cover, and leave for 20 minutes. Strain the cream, season to taste. Break each egg into a buttered individual baking dish and stand them in a roasting pan with enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the dishes. Cook in a moderate oven until the whites are almost set. Pour a little cream over each, just covering the surface, then return to the oven for another 2 minutes. Sprinkle with the chopped tarragon, serve at once.

Tarragon Sauce
Melt 45g butter in a saucepan, stir in 30g flour, then slowly add 250ml milk. While bringing to the boil, stir in a chopped shallot and a handful of chopped fresh tarragon leaves (or half quantity of dried). Simmer for several minutes.

Roast Tarragon Chicken
1 whole chicken, about 2kg
salt and pepper
knob butter
3 teaspoons dried tarragon, or use fresh
4 tablespoons oil
2 rashers bacon

Sprinkle salt and pepper into cavity of chicken, ad the butter and tarragon. Put chicken into a baking dish, pour oil over it, sprinkle with more salt and pepper and put a sprig of tarragon (or sprinkle dried tarragon) on top. Cover the chicken with greaseproof paper and bake at 190C for 1 1/2 hours. After 20-30 minutes, remove paper, baste the chicken with pan drippings, then replace the paper. Vegetables of choice may be baked in the same dish as the chicken. Baste again after another 30 minutes. During the last 20 minutes of cooking, remove the paper and cover the breast with the bacon rashers.

Tarragon Mustard
1 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup tarragon vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh tarragon or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried

Whisk or put in blender the first four ingredients. Add olive oil in a slow stream and blend well. Stir in tarragon. Excellent with
cold fish, seafood, chicken, beef, and eggs, in egg salad, chicken salad, and tuna salad.

Thanks for the recipes I have also passed them onto my daughter. Can't wait to try the mustard.
Cheers Mrs B

Tarragon also gets rid of any excess bile in the stomach.

And I grow my tarragon in a concrete bessa block surrounded by other herbs and plants under my passionfruit vine. Doing wonderfully for years, cut it back and use it and in autumn will die down to nothing and in spring will shoot all over the place.

Thanks for that Baz, but don't the roots come through the bottom of the brick? No-one told me just how tough this Mexican variety is. It survives quite well despite my forgetting to water it, regularly.

If it's Mexican tarragon (Tagetes lucida) then you can even smoke it !

The Aztecs would use the smoke to inebriate their prisoners before sacrificing them with heart removal.

I do tarragon potatoes. They are yummy. Just slice your potatoes and microwave till cooked. Then butter and tarragon them and reheat slightly. They are very nice with fish. Helene

Anyone have any idea where I could locate/order some tarragon plants or seeds? I've looked around at the local nurseries with no luck.

~William

William, Renaissance Herbs have French Tarragon in their range. If your local nursery carries Renaissance but doenn't have Tarragon ask them to order it in for you.

I have emphasised French Tarragon as this is the one used for cooking. There is a Russian Tarragon which is often simply labelled as 'Tarragon' leading to the belief that this is the French Tarragon. I was in a nursery this weekend and they had pots labelled simply 'Tarragon' and it was the Russian Tarragon. Taste a leaf and if it has a strong taste of aniseed that will be the French; also the Russian Tarragon is more upright than the French.

As far as seeds are concerned, French tarragon rarely sets seed so that packets labelled as such will probably be Russian.

You can also get tarragon by mail-order from Austral Herbs (www.australherbs.com.au) or Marshall's Herbs (www.herbsalive.com.au).

Well Skulking Lurker :o) as I sit puffing on my weed all the time looking around for a lurking Aztec............I can thank Helene2 for the cooking hint.
William would like to be able to help you with seeds but they are no where near setting yet. Try a post to the exchange forum or ask at your garden centre or someone like Bunnings for the Renaissence herbs. There is usually a couple of selections of Tarragon to be made there or else they can tell you when they are coming in.
Anna my Mexican Tarragon is stiff and upright where as my daughters Tarragon flops all over the ground and has become a large bush. Would you have any idea what variety that would be? It's very pleasant and not at all overpowering.
Cheers Mrs B

William

My mexican tarragon set seed last year so I have some seeds if you would like some. Its currently in the process of setting seed again. Its an insane plant, ive neglected it completely and it just keeps growing stronger and larger. It gets these very pretty sunshine yellow flowers before it sets seed.

I also have french tarragon, which i planted a few months back. Its still alive and its grown a little bit, but I can see already that its not going to be as hardy as my mexican tarragon.

Anyhow, let me know if you would like some of the mexican tarragon seeds.

- Katrina

Mrs. B, I take it that it's not Mexican Tarragon that your daughter has? I think it's probably the French Tarragon especially as it has a pleasant smell, but it can tend to be a bit floppy. The Russian Tarragon looks very similar to the French. The following website might help in the identification:

http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/artdracanculus.htm

Hi Anna
I checked with my daughter and hers is the French one. Grows like a weed and she shears it to the ground every year. Now a huge bush which is quite hilarious as she only wants a few sprigs now and then for fish menu's. It's not a herb she particularly loves. But isn't it always the way, the one's you love sulk and the others flourish. My mexican variety is just about unkillable, I find that so surprising as tarragons always look so fine and soft and look like they'd cark it really easy.

So that is the problem with my Tarragon? Sounds like I got a big batch of the Russian stuff.

The stuff started like a weed and has *absolutely* no flavor or smell what so ever. I am totally disappointed by the lack of anything interesting in it....

I guess now, I will have to pull it all up and find some of the "Genuine Article"

Thanks all

John

Hi, I posted this awhile ago, and it tastes fantastic, although it is more practical in summer when the zucchini takes off. I want to try some tarragon in potato and leek soup as well, I think it would go well.

A great way to use up zucchini:

Zucchini Soup

3 med Zucchini
1 onion
1 potato
4 chicken stock cubes
4 cups water
1 teaspoon dried tarragon

lightly fry zucchini and onoin in a little oil. Add rest of ingredients. Cook for 30 minutes. Blend in mixer.

Reheat - garnish with cream and chopped chives.

I know this is an old post, but I was doing a search and enjoyed reading this very interesting thread on tarragon. Just to add a comment, tarragon is absolutely great with any kind of mushroom dish. Mushroom soup, mushroom quiche, etc. I often use it when I do scrambled eggs with mushrooms. I'm growing French tarragon at home. It is thriving so far, but I've only had it for a few months and haven't nursed it through a winter yet.

Just thought I'd mention that the way to tell if you have the real-deal french tarragon is that it will have a slight numbing effect on the tongue. This plants goes dornmant over winter - in places that have a winter that is! I use tarragon in homemade tartare sauce.

mudlark

wendy
if you want to use sage flowers for the colour, try blanching then refreshing them and serving it as an edible garnish:)
when i'm adding herbs like rosemary and thyme i prefer using a bouquet garni because the herbs infuse into whatever it is i'm cooking and i don't end up with all the twiggy stuff in my food

~cathy

I noticed that most of the posts in this Tarragon thread are from Australia - makes me think that my New York conditions will not be good for French Tarragon.

Is that true? Is it a tender plant? Will it come back in Zone 6?

PS It so old but I still just get such a kick out of sitting here and talking to folks on the other side of the planet. WOW!

Just realized I was in the Australia section! Have no idea how I got here.