It's summer, and as usual, my herb garden is under construction until further notice. I have no intention of trying to grow herbs like the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves that went into last night's soup, nor even the wild thyme for zaatar, the ubiquitous spice mixture with sesame seeds, sumac and salt (although zaatar happens to also be an umbrella term for a whole family of herbs including oregano, basil, thyme and savory).
Rather, my intention is to avoid the pang of guilt I feel every time I approach the boxed fresh-herb rack at the produce market. I feel guilt, too, when I see the herb farmer at the farmers' market with his little pots of sweet Genovese basil that I could easily transplant, if only I had the commitment to water it daily.
But the most unbearable guilt, by far, is the tidal wave that hits me when throwing out yet another box of shrivelled refrigerated herbs that have gone unused. I almost never use dried herbs, but I'm addicted to expensive, fresh herbs the way some women are addicted to manicures. I just can't help myself.
Herbs rotate through my kitchen daily. Last month, I was still using sage in wintry dishes. Last week, there was marjoram in the roast chicken. Tomorrow, there'll be basil in the pesto, coriander in the guacamole, and rosemary in the polenta cake we had for dessert. In general, herbs do not constitute the bulk of a dish - though an honourable exception is tabbouleh, made with parsley and mint. A herb can be just about any kind of plant and any part of its anatomy: leaf, resin, root, flower, seed.
You say tomato, I say "erbs" - without the h - an inexplicable and irritating American practice to those who favour standard British English, where the h is pronounced. I used the word "herb" a lot while doing a degree in traditional Chinese medicine, which involved a lot of herbology. Although dried herbs are by definition not fresh, some are fresher than others, as I discovered after watching in a mixture of horror and delight as tiny worms floated to the surface of the simmering water in my very first pot of homemade Chinese herbal tea.
The medicinal effects of herbs have been documented in both the Quran and the Bible. Today, indigenous Emirati herbal formulas are studied at Abu Dhabi's Zayed Complex for Herbal Research and Traditional Medicine. The medieval Hellenistic Islamic philosopher and physician Ibn Sina (c.980-1037) devised an entire medical system and he, too, was a huge proponent of medical herbs.
In addition to medicinal herbs of dubious origin, some culinary herbs can have a nauseating effect - cilantro (or coriander, as it's also known, particularly when in seed form) being the most common. Like dill, cilantro is used in both seed and plant form. But it isn't for everyone.
In a 2002 interview with Larry King, for example, the celebrated American cook Julia Child admitted to disliking cilantro and arugula, saying: "They're both green herbs; they have kind of a dead taste to me? I would pick it out if I saw it and throw it on the floor." Child isn't alone. Though she was wrong about arugula being a herb, cilantro (which I love), contains aldehydes similar to those found in soaps and lotions and the bug family of insects.
According to the Oxford Companion to Food, the word "coriander" itself comes from the Greek word for bedbug. I say cilantro, you say coriander. Or, I say ambrosia, you say soap.
Cilantro, native to the eastern Mediterranean, is one of the world's most ubiquitous green herbs, used all over Asia and Latin America. And cilantro pesto is said to have deeper roots in Mediterranean cuisine than versions made with basil.
In New Mexico, the sensuous aroma of burning sage signifies that someone is "smudging" or performing a spiritual cleansing. But the scent of a basil plant on a city balcony in Abu Dhabi smells a thousand times more dizzyingly wonderful. Tragically condemned to a legacy of mediocre Caprese salads, basil is one of world's greatest flavours, and there are countless varieties of it; sweet Genovese basil (the most common), Thai basil, lemon basil, holy basil, purple basil.
When I can get them, I like lemon verbena, lemon mint and lemon thyme in desserts.
Aside from bay leaves, I don't use dried herbs, except as a form of natural pest control. Adapted from a recipe by wool spinners and weavers, cheesecloth bags filled with a cup of dried rosemary mixed with half a cup of mint, a quarter cup of thyme and two tablespoons of cloves can be tucked into cupboards and drawers to repel moths, as can sachets of dried lavender or rosemary and mint. Muslin bags can be stuffed with sage, mint, rosemary and pinches of cinnamon and dried lemon peel and used in place of moth balls - and they smell much nicer.
My little herb garden is going to have to work hard to keep up.
SPEC SHEET: SAMSUNG GALAXY Z FOLD5
Main display: 7.6" QXGA+ Dynamic Amoled 2X, Infinity Flex, 2176 x 1812, 21.6:18, 374ppi, HDR10+, up to 120Hz
Cover display: 6.2" HD+ Dynamic Amoled 2X, 2316 x 904, 23.1:9, 402ppi, up to 120Hz
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, 4nm, octa-core; Adreno 740 GPU
Memory: 12GB
Capacity: 256/512GB / 1TB (online exclusive)
Platform: Android 13, One UI 5.1.1
Main camera: Triple 12MP ultra-wide (f/2.2) + 50MP wide (f/1.8) + 10MP telephoto (f/2.4), dual OIS, 3x optical zoom, 30x Space Zoom, portrait, super slo-mo
Video: 8K@24fps, 4K@60fps, full-HD@60/240fps, HD@960fps; slo-mo@60/240/960fps; HDR10+
Cover camera: 10MP (f/2.2)
Inner front camera: Under-display 4MP (f/1.8)
Battery: 4400mAh, 25W fast charging, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless
Connectivity: 5G; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC (Samsung Pay)
I/O: USB-C
Cards: Nano-SIM + eSIM; dual nano-SIMs + eSIM
Colours: Cream, icy blue, phantom black; online exclusives – blue, grey
In the box: Fold5, USB-C-to-USB-C cable
Price: Dh6,799 / Dh7,249 / Dh8,149
The specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: nine-speed
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh848,000
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Spec sheet
Display: 4.7" Retina HD, 1334 x 750, 625 nits, 1400:1, True Tone, P3
Chip: Apple A15 Bionic, 6-core CPU, 4-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Camera: 12MP, f/1.8, 5x digital zoom, Smart HDR, Deep Fusion
Video: 4K+@ 24/30/60fps, full HD+@ 30/60fps, HD+@ 30 fps
Front camera: 7MP, f/2.2, Smart HDR, Deep Fusion; HD video+@ 30fps
Battery: Up to 15 hours video, 50 hours audio; 50% fast charge in 30 minutes with 20W charger; wireless charging
Biometrics: Touch ID
Durability: IP67, dust, water resistant up to 1m for 30 minutes
Price: From Dh1,849
Andor
Creator: Tony Gilroy
Stars: Diego Luna, Genevieve O'Reilly, Alex Ferns
Rating: 5/5
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
The specs: 2018 Maxus T60
Price, base / as tested: Dh48,000
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder
Power: 136hp @ 1,600rpm
Torque: 360Nm @ 1,600 rpm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.1L / 100km
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
Roll of honour
Who has won what so far in the West Asia Premiership season?
Western Clubs Champions League - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens - Winners: Dubai Exiles; Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons
West Asia Premiership - Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons; Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership Cup - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Cup - Winners: Bahrain; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Trophy - Winners: Dubai Hurricanes; Runners up: DSC Eagles
Final West Asia Premiership standings - 1. Jebel Ali Dragons; 2. Abu Dhabi Harlequins; 3. Bahrain; 4. Dubai Exiles; 5. Dubai Hurricanes; 6. DSC Eagles; 7. Abu Dhabi Saracens
Fixture (UAE Premiership final) - Friday, April 13, Al Ain – Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
SHALASH THE IRAQI
Author: Shalash
Translator: Luke Leafgren
Pages: 352
Publisher: And Other Stories
Scoreline
UAE 2-1 Saudi Arabia
UAE Mabkhout 21’, Khalil 59’
Saudi Al Abed (pen) 20’
Man of the match Ahmed Khalil (UAE)
Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Fixtures
Wednesday January 8 –Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 – Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 – UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: SmartCrowd
Started: 2018
Founder: Siddiq Farid and Musfique Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech / PropTech
Initial investment: $650,000
Current number of staff: 35
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Various institutional investors and notable angel investors (500 MENA, Shurooq, Mada, Seedstar, Tricap)
SPEC SHEET
Display: 10.9" Liquid Retina IPS, 2360 x 1640, 264ppi, wide colour, True Tone, Apple Pencil support
Chip: Apple M1, 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Memory: 64/256GB storage; 8GB RAM
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, Smart HDR
Video: 4K @ 25/25/30/60fps, full HD @ 25/30/60fps, slo-mo @ 120/240fps
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR, Centre Stage; full HD @ 25/30/60fps
Audio: Stereo speakers
Biometrics: Touch ID
I/O: USB-C, smart connector (for folio/keyboard)
Battery: Up to 10 hours on Wi-Fi; up to 9 hours on cellular
Finish: Space grey, starlight, pink, purple, blue
Price: Wi-Fi – Dh2,499 (64GB) / Dh3,099 (256GB); cellular – Dh3,099 (64GB) / Dh3,699 (256GB)
Company profile
Name: Purpl
Co-founders: Karl Naim, Wissam Ghorra, Jean-Marie Khoueir
Based: Hub71 in Abu Dhabi and Beirut
Started: 2021
Number of employees: 12
Sector: FinTech
Funding: $2 million
Voices: How A Great Singer Can Change Your Life
Nick Coleman
Jonathan Cape
Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022
First match: November 20
Final 16 round: December 3 to 6
Quarter-finals: December 9 and 10
Semi-finals: December 13 and 14
Final: December 18