This is a smorgasbord of info so I’ve highlighted the important points in case you just want to skim.
This weekend I was grilling and I got to thinking about rosemary (as one does). 🤷🏽♀️
Rosemary is the only compound that I am aware of that can wipe out the HCA’s (heterocyclic amines, which are carcinogens) that form when grilling food or cooking at high temperatures.
These start to build up on all flesh foods (meat, poultry and even fish) four minutes after the temperature reaches 352°. The longer the cooking time and the higher the temperature, the greater the toxic buildup.
But not when you cook with rosemary! Rosemary can drastically reduce (and in some cases eliminate) these harmful toxins. This is because rosemary’s active ingredients, rosmarinic acid, carnosic acid and carnosol make it one of the most powerful antioxidants on earth. Imagine that! 😲
I’m telling you, these spices never cease to amaze me. 🥰 And you know what? The ONLY place you can get rosmarinic acid is in rosemary. And the ONLY place you can get carnosic acid and carnosol is in rosemary and sage.
Yet another reason to ensure your spices are fresh, so that they still contain these volatile oils that have so many (flavor AND health) benefits.
And you know who’s over here grinding spices right before I bottle them? Hi. Hello. 👋🏽
In addition, I blended rosemary into UMAMI-Q (our barbecue blend) for this very reason. So that you can grill more confidently. But still, no charring please. 🙈
Other blends that contain rosemary are The Herbed Turkey, Nuthin’ But Herbs and Rosemary Thyme Salt.
One study found that just breathing rosemary essential oil reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol in a group of volunteers. Sometimes I put it in my diffuser along with lavender before I go to bed.
Cooking rosemary improves its capabilities but it can easily overpower a dish so be aware of that.
Experts suggest getting 2 grams of dried rosemary in your diet per day. I have no idea how much that is but I add Nuthin’ But Herbs to the salad dressing that I use most days.
Some additional benefits of rosemary include:
- Correlated to cardiovascular health, anti-obesity qualities, anti-diabetic abilities, oral health, hair growth stimulation and support for respiratory disorders.
- It’s even been shown to protect your skin from the sun by forming a protective shield against UV radiation.
- Traditional healers have always believed in rosemary’s healing powers (and other spices), and science is just now catching up (as with a lot of things). To date over 500 studies have shown rosemary to assist with dermatitis, memory, cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, blood clots & stroke, arthritis, diabetes, ulcers, urinary tract infections and depression.
- Inhibits the growth of pancreatic cancer cells and hemorrhoids
How to get more rosemary in your diet…
- If you are sautéing in oil, you can also add rosemary to the oil to preserve the oil from oxidation and HCA’s.
- Put whole sprigs under roast lamb or in the cavity of a whole chicken or fish.
- Finely chop the leaves to add to tomato based soups and sauces.
- Use to flavor strong vegetables like Brussels sprouts, cabbage and eggplant.
- Add a big sprig to a bottle of evoo, with some crushed red chilies, a few sprigs of thyme, a bay leaf, 1 tbsp. of oregano and a tsp of fennel.
- Use UMAMI Bermuda Spice Co. blends. 😎
But before I forget. Wanna know what I was grilling? 😬 I thought you’d never ask.
Coincidentally, I had steak and chicken thawed at the same time (cuz I had just gotten home from the grocery store). 🤣
Saw a recipe with skewers and grilled tomato and onions. And I just happened to have I big bunch of Bermuda onions AND local tomato & zucchini, and some Anaheim peppers (had to go to Google to figure out what these were. They came in my CSA from Food Forest, along with the onions & zucchini. LOVE that everything they send me is organic!) 🙌🏽 Anyhoo, the peppers weren’t spicy but had a tiny little kick. Nice.
This meal didn’t need a recipe I simply seasoned the veggies. The Herbed Turkey is a superstar for those.
Cut the onions and the peppers in half lengthwise. Cut the tomatoes in quarters and the zucchini. Brush everything with avocado oil and season. I cut the steak lengthwise (against the grain). Cut the chicken into cubes as best you can. (THIGHS! Y’all already know how I feel about breasts on a grill. Just don’t.) Oil, season and skewer.
Cook the onion over direct heat for 10 minutes on low. Then move to the cool side. Add the chicken over direct heat on medium. 5 minutes on each side. Then move to the cool side. The steak and peppers you can add when you like depending on how well done you want them.
Zucchini cooks in minutes. You want it al dente, not soggy. Take it off before you think it’s done. And the tomato, you are just getting a few grill lines on it. Definitely don’t cook it through.
Please note, the cool side is still hot; it just prevents your food from burning to a crisp. Keep the top on.
And there you have it. What a delicious meal. If anything is happening too fast (or too hot), just move it to the cool side until you get yourself together. 😂
A few Tips for Grilling
Create a ‘cool’ side of the grill. If you are cooking with charcoal, you can bank up the charcoal more on one side. If gas, simply turn off one or more burners once the grill is hot.
Cook over indirect heat as much as possible. I like to get some color on my food (not charred) before moving it to the ‘cool’ side of the grill.
Start with foods that take longer to cook. (I’m sure I don’t need to tell you this, but now you can’t say that I didn’t. 🤭)
Make sure the grill is hot! (Again, I may not need to tell you this.)
Oil the grill (or the food). If it is something really delicate, I may oil the grill, but generally I don’t. Wait for food to ‘release’ before trying to move it (unless it is burning or on fire 😭).
Cut veggies nice and big. I learned this the hard way and not immediately. I don’t know how many pieces of vegetables were lost in the process!
Ok. I’m done. Byeeeeee!