Garden of aromatic plants
Photos Credit: Salagon Museum. Text : Marie Josèphe Moncorgé. Translator: Jean-Marc Bulit
Dill
Already know by the Mesopotamians, dill (Anethum graveolens) is an umbel plant native to Asia that grows throughout the Mediterrenean basin. Apicius has a dozen recipes with it. The Romans thought that dill had the power of increasing ones physical energy: gladiators systematically ate some.
Hildegarde de Bingen thought dill makes man sad but Platéarius recommended it for the stomach and the brains. Platina thought dill drove away headaches et favored digestion. The Liber de Coquina contains 3 recipes for herbs fried with dill and one for anchovies and sardines with dill and spinach.
This plant, close to fennel, was rediscovered in modern cuisine to go along with fish.