ALBAHACA.
Basil
ONCIMUM BASILICUM
Sunny annual. Many varieties with flavors ranging from lemony to minty to cinnamon-like. Not often used in Mexican cooking but occasionally in vinaigrette.

CHEPIL.
Chepil, Chipil
CROTALARIA LONGIROSTRATA
A 6-foot flowering shrub, deep-rooted and drought-resistant. Leaves and flowers eaten as a vegetable, sometimes steamed. Flavor like snap beans. Leaves added to tamales.

CILANTRO.
Cilantro, coriander, Chinese parsley
CORIANDRUM SATIVUM
Sunny annual that reseeds easily. Unique tangy flavor used in everything from salsa to mole, with cheese, in broth, rice, beans.
Seed has a very different flavor from the fresh leaf. Leaf flavor lost through drying.

CORTEZA DE MAGUEY OR MIXIOTE.
Century plant, agave
AGAVE AMERICANA
The leaf membrane of the maguey is peeled and dried to produce a parchment-like material used as a roasting pouch for meats and poultry.

EPAZOTE.
Epazote, Mexican tea, wormseed
CHENOPODIUM AMBROSIOIDES
Tough camphor-smelling perennial that reseeds prolifically. Grows wild in parts of central and southern Mexico. Considered by many to be indispensable to a good pot of beans. Digestive, used for intestinal disorders.
Culinary uses are many: chopped fresh and added to sauteed mushrooms or omelets, used in quesadillas, moles, broths.
Can be carefully dried for winter use. Very easy to grow.

FLOR DE FRIJOL.
Bean flower
PHASEOLUS VULGARIS
Flowers of the bean group that contains kidney, navy, green, pinto, snap, string and wax beans. Flowers are sauteed fresh, added to cooked beans and fresh salsas.

HIERBA BUENA.
Spearmint
MENTHA SPICATA
A shady perennial, easily propogated from root cuttings. Aromatic flavor added to guacamole, broth, meats, meatballs, cooked sauces. Fresh leaf used in cold drinks.

HIERBA DE CONEJO.
Indian paintbrush
CASTILLEJA LANATA
Zapotec herb used in the cooking of beans and rice. Used fresh or dry.

HIERBA SANTA OR HOJA SANTA.
Hierba santa
PIPER AURITUM
tender woody-stemmed perennial. Velvety, heart-shaped leaves used in green mole, for wrapping tamales, with chicken, beef, shrimp.

HOJA DE AGUACATE.
Avocado leaf
PERSEA AMERICANA
The leaf of the tropical avocado tree is used fresh or dried in broths, chicken dishes, beans, tamales and with fish. Provides delicate, slightly aromatic flavor.
It is said that the poorer the fruit of the tree, the tastier its leaves will be. Avocados grown in the U.S. are usually West Indian or Guatemalan races; fragrant, anise-scented leaves and stems are characteristic of the Mexican race only.

HOJA DE MAIZ.
Corn husk
ZEA MAlS
The husk of any variety of corn is used both fresh and dried, primarily to wrap tamales. Fresh corn is delicious grilled directly in the husk. Remove silk and add butter and salt, wrap husks back around the ear and roast.

HOJA DE PLATANO.
Banana leaf
MUSA PARADISIACA
Banana trees are tropical but can be grown in colder climates if the bulb or root is dug before frost and stored in a cool, dry place. Return to the garden in spring.
Will grow annually to 15 feet if handled in this way. Leaves used to wrap tamales.

HUAUZONTLE
Huauzontle
CHENOPODIUM BERLANDIERI
Aztec plant with a flavor like broccoli. only the tender tip is used, cooked with onion and garlic, sometimes dipped in butter and deep-fried.

LAUREL.
Bay leaf bay, bay laurel
LITSEA SSP.
Mexican bay is thinner-leafed, more silvery and more delicate in flavor than Mediterranean bay (LAURIS NOBILIS). It is used for pickling, in cooked sauces, soup, meat dishes.

MANZANILLA.
Chamomile, German chamomile.
MATRICARIA RECUTITA
The Spanish name means "little apple," which describes the aroma of this sun-loving perennial with small yellow, daisy-like blooms. Used in Mexico to make a digestive, mildly diuretic tea, an eyewash, or a hair rinse.

MENTA.
Peppermint
MENTHA PIPERITA
A shady perennial, easily propogated from root cuttings. Used much like spearmint.

PAPALO OR PAPALOQUELITE
Papalo
POROPHYLLUM RUDERALE
Pungent digestive herb eaten raw by the sprig with tacos, guacamole, salad. From PAPALOTL, the Nahuati for "butterfly."

PEPICHA
Pepicha
POROPHYLLUM TAGETOIDES
Sunny annual with a flavor like cilantro but stronger. Used with squash, corn, cuitlacoche.

PEREJIL.
Parsley
PETROSELINUM CRISPUM
Sun-loving biennial that reseeds easily. Mexican parsley is the flat4eafed variety. Used in rice, stews, casseroles, green mole. Add toward the end of cooking.

QUELITES.
Lamb's quarter
CHENOPODIUM BERLANDIERI
Sunny annual growing to 3 feet. Young growth eaten raw or used as a cooked vegetable, with a spinach-like flavor. Used by Indians of Southwestern U. S. in much the same way as in Mexico.
Combined with pumpkin seeds and chile strips in pre- Hispanic cooking.

ROMERITO.
Romerito
SUAEDA TORREYANA
Used fresh or as a cooked green, especially during Lent and The Day of the Dead. Small succulent leaves resemble those of pursiane.

TE LIMON.
Lemon grass
CYMBOPOGON CITRATUS
Tall, sun-loving tender perennial with the appearance of a large clump of decorative grass. Lemon-scented leaves. Traditionally used only for tea but added to chicken broth or soup in contemporary cuisine.

TOMILLO.
Thyme, garden thyme
THYMUS VULGARIS
Sunny aromatic perennial. Used in pickled chiles and marinades, with meats, mushrooms, cooked sauces.

TORONJIL.
Balm-gentle.
AGASTACHE MEXICANA
The citrus-scented toronjil is an annual that grows to 4 feet in good soil and germinates readily from seed. Used to make a diuretic tea which is considered good for weight control and for blood cleansing.

VERDOLAGA.
Pursiane
PORTULACA OLERACEA
Low-growing, sun-loving succulent grown a~ an annual. Archaeological evidence that it was eaten by American natives ca. 1200. Sharp, cooling flavor. Eaten raw in salad or steamed, sauteed with onion and chile, in green mole.