The French consider coriander to be Moroccan, the British used to call it Chinese parsley, and Americans associate it with Mexican cuisine.

The coriander plant gives us two ingredients in one. In the U.S. its green sprigs are most often marketed by their Spanish name, cilantro, while coriander refers to the seeds. In other English-speaking countries coriander denotes the leaves as well.

Americans have not been familiar with the greens of the coriander plant for very long. In much of the U.S., if you were born 50 years ago, you probably would have reached your 20s without coming across cilantro.

Nowadays cilantro is ubiquitous. It is conquering America, albeit slowly and without fanfare. Whenever you go out with friends to try a new ethnic eatery, you're likely to encounter the tender, aromatic herb. If you're eating Asian food -- be it Indian, Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese or Persian -- you'll probably find cilantro on your plate. The same is true for North African and for eastern Mediterranean cuisines such as Israeli and Lebanese.

Cilantro is so central to Mexican cooking that it seems logical to assume that, like chilies, the plant originated in the Americas. Yet cilantro is a biblical herb indigenous to the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Native Americans did not have a taste of this fragrant herb until a few hundred years ago, when the Europeans brought it to the New World.

This well-traveled herb gives a delicious taste and bright green color to my Indian-born sister-in-law's chicken soup. It flavored my Yemen-born mother-in-law's falafel, and my Moroccan relatives' marinades for fish, chicken and meat. I have used cilantro in stews ranging from spicy cauliflower with potatoes to Sephardi beef shank stew with white beans and zucchini.

Coriander seeds have a tangy, citrus-like flavor and are prized by chefs in a variety of cuisines stretching from Europe to India, where it is one of the milder components of curry blends. At their best when freshly ground, coriander seeds impart a delicate aroma and pleasing taste to hot cooked rice and other grains, such as a breakfast stew of wheat berries and chicken that I sampled at an Assyrian festival in Los Angeles. At cooking school in Paris, we simmered the whole seeds with vegetables in a savory sauce for vegetables a la grecque. And, yes, said the chef, you do eat the cooked seeds.

Cilantro is easier to use than parsley because you can use the whole sprig, including the stem. Because cilantro is so tender, for many dishes it tastes fine when chopped coarsely. Thai cooks also use coriander roots, mostly in curry pastes.

In order to keep cilantro's fresh aroma, most cooks use it raw, sprinkled over soups or stews at the last minute. Some restaurant chefs set cilantro sprigs at the rim of the plate instead so that those who like cilantro can stir it in. A similar serving custom, popular among Vietnamese cooks, is to offer cilantro sprigs on a separate platter for adding in small pieces to soups.

For a muted cilantro flavor, Persians saute chopped cilantro as the first step of stew-making, and Moroccans simmer the herb in sauces along with chicken or meat.

Choose cilantro sprigs that are firm and bright green, with no yellow spots. Remove the rubber band before storing the bunch. Keep the herb in an open plastic bag in the refrigerator and use it within a few days. Following the advice of a produce man at my neighborhood Mexican market, I keep mine on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator; it lasts five or six days. Some people treat cilantro bunches like flowers and keep them in a vase of water in the refrigerator with a plastic bag loosely covering the herb.

Cauliflower With Tomatoes, Garlic & Cilantro

With garlic and hot pepper sauce, cilantro creates a lively flavoring combination for all sorts of vegetables. Here the cilantro is used two ways: Most of it simmers in the sauce for a delicate flavor, and a little is sprinkled on the vegetable at serving time for a fresh touch. For a light main course, I add 1 or 2 cups cooked chickpeas and serve rice or couscous as an accompaniment.

Makes 4 servings.

1 large cauliflower, divided in medium florets

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 large garlic cloves, chopped

1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, drained and diced

1/2 teaspoon paprika

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon harissa (North African hot pepper paste), or other hot pepper paste or hot sauce to taste

3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Add cauliflower to a large saucepan of boiling salted water, and boil uncovered over high heat for 6 to 7 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain in a colander, rinse with cold water and drain well.

Heat oil in a large, deep saute pan or shallow stew pan; add garlic and saute over medium heat for 10 seconds. Add tomatoes, paprika, salt and pepper, and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in harissa and all but 2 teaspoons of cilantro.

Add cauliflower and stir gently. Heat to simmer. Cover and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, gently stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro and serve hot or room temperature.

Baked Halibut in Egyptian Cilantro Sauce

Cilantro is used in the marinade for the fish and in the savory tomato sauce, which is also flavored with coriander seeds. Serve this tasty, easy-to-prepare fish entree with rice pilaf or fresh flatbread.

Makes 4 servings.

1 1/2 pounds halibut, cod, sea bass or other firm, white-fleshed fish, about 1 inch thick, cut in 4 pieces, rinsed, patted dry

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, or 1 tablespoon oil and 2 tablespoons butter

Salt and pepper to taste

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, diced

1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes, or to taste

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 canned plum tomatoes, pureed in a food processor or blender

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/3 cup water

Cilantro sprigs, for garnish

Put fish steaks in a deep plate in one layer. Mix lemon juice with 1 tablespoon cilantro, 1 tablespoon oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour over fish and turn to coat both sides. Let stand while preparing sauce.

Preheat oven to 400 F. Heat remaining oil or butter in a skillet. Add onion and cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes or until soft but not brown. Add green pepper, hot pepper flakes and garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Stir in ground coriander, cumin, pureed tomatoes and tomato paste, and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in water and bring to a simmer. Add remaining chopped cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Lightly oil a baking dish large enough to hold fish in a single layer. Spoon about one third of sauce into dish. Top with fish and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Top with remaining sauce. Cover and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until fish can just be flaked with a fork in its thickest part. Serve garnished with cilantro sprigs.

Double Coriander Chili

Coriander seed and leaves -- cilantro -- combine with garlic to give this Middle Eastern chili plenty of flavor. To make it colorful, I mix white and lima beans with the meaty sauce. Vary the meat and beans to your taste. Make it with lamb and lentils, or with beef and fava beans, chickpeas or shelled edamame (green soy beans). Use chicken or turkey for a lighter chili, or soy ground meat for a meatless meal.

Saving part of the golden onions and garlic to add to the finished stew makes their flavors more pronounced and gives the chili more punch. Serve the chili with fresh flatbreads or tortillas, or spoon it as a thick sauce over hot cooked rice or spaghetti.

Makes about 6 servings.

2 to 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 large onions, chopped

8 large garlic cloves, minced

1 green bell pepper, diced

3/4 to 1 pound extra lean ground beef

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 1/2 cups tomato sauce

1 cup beef or chicken broth or water

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 1/2 cups frozen lima beans, cooked according to package directions

1 1/2 to 2 cups cooked white beans or a 15-ounce can, drained

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

Cayenne pepper to taste

Pitted black or green olives (for garnish)

Heat oil in a heavy saute pan. Add onions and saute over medium heat, stirring often, for 10 minutes or until tender and golden. Add garlic and saute for 1/2 minute. Remove half of mixture and reserve in a bowl.

To onion-garlic mixture in pan add green pepper, beef, coriander and cumin, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, for 7 minutes or until meat changes color. Add tomato sauce, broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Cover and cook over low heat for 10 minutes or until meat is cooked through.

Add lima beans and white beans. If chili is too thick, add 1/4 cup water or more if needed. Cover and cook over low heat for 5 minutes or until stew is thick and well flavored. Add reserved onion-garlic mixture, 3 tablespoons cilantro and cayenne pepper. Cover and heat through. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve garnished with remaining cilantro and with olives.

Super Easy Mideast Meets Mexico Cilantro Salsa

This Super Easy Mideast Meets Mexico Cilantro Salsa recipe came about when I added a tomatillo to my mother in law's Yemenite salsa, which is called zehug. I make the salsa in small quantities to keep its flavor fresh and its color bright, but you can easily double or triple the recipe. At the table we add small spoonfuls of the salsa to soups, stews and salads.

Makes 1/4 to 1/3 cup.

2 or 3 large garlic cloves, peeled and cut in a few pieces

1 red or green jalapeno, seeded if you want it less hot, cut in a few pieces

1 small tomatillo, husk removed, quartered

1/3 to 1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

Salt to taste (optional)

In a mini food processor chop the garlic and jalapeno. Add the tomatillo and cilantro and chop by pulsing until the mixture forms a fine or coarse paste, according to your taste. If it is too dry, add water by teaspoons. Add salt if you like. Keep it in a small jar in the refrigerator.

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