Using rosemary in cooking

I automatically use rosemary for roast potatoes, either cut or fresh new potatoes.

I microwave the potatoes first in butter and dried rosemary, tossing them vigorously before adding to the roast. That might be a bit decadent for some of you.

I love the pine like aroma of rosemary, in the garden, in the kitchen and, of course, in the food. Rosemary is commonly used with pork, fish and chicken. I always use a little with roast lamb.

It can be combined with olive oil in sautéing eggplant, tomatoes or zuccini. I confess to using dried rosemary as it tends to disintegrate after imparting its flavour so you are not left with chewy bits of rosemary leaves in your dish. Fresh can be used but remove the leaves before serving. It is easy to dry; just hang the sprigs upside down until they have completely dried.

Rosemary is great for barbeques. The bigger stems ban be used as skewers, the smaller ones thrown onto the coals to produce a mouth watering aroma. But remove the leaves first as you don't want to overdo it! Throwing sprigs of Rosemary of the barbie has health benefits, too. Check out this article by Jennifer Viegas on the ABC website

Try combining finely chopped rosemary, salt, pepper and flour as a rub for roasting small chickens or game fowls. There's no end to how you can use rosemary.