Herb. No. 064 · Lamiaceae
Tropical Old World culinary basil, a summer annual in temperate kitchens.
Native · South Asia · Africa
Native Also grownNow a garden plant worldwide
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Sweet basil
Ocimum basilicum
Medicinal herbsKitchenHarvestCompanionsLookalikes
The pesto leaf — a cooling kitchen mint for digestion and summer nerves.
Sweet basil is food first. Traditional Mediterranean and South Asian kitchens use it as a carminative and a cooling aromatic. Essential oil is a different, concentrated drug. Holy basil (O. tenuiflorum) is a separate plate.
Flavor
Clove-anise sweetness over green leaf, brighter when torn than when cooked.
Parts used
Leaf · Flowering tops
Helpful
- Everyday food
- Grows in a windowsill pot
Cautions
- Oil is not a tea
- Cold nights blacken the plant