33 free mint kitchen insights and benefits

Did you know that there are over 600 distinct kinds of mint plants that you may pick from?

• There are many different types of mint available, including pineapple mint, apple mint, orange mint, water mint, and horse mint. Peppermint and spearmint are two unique forms of mint, yet when we talk about mint, we are referring to both of these types.
• Menthol, an agent that is both cooling and calming, may be extracted from mint, its primary source. As a result of this, mint is a very helpful technique to provide alleviation for a variety of different types of pain. It is most well-known for its use in the treatment of burns to the skin, but it is also beneficial for alleviating issues with breathing. In addition to this, mint is an excellent agent for calming the muscles throughout your body.
• Moroccan tagines and Egyptian spice mixes often include mint in their ingredients lists. Additionally, mint is used in the preparation of lamb, which is a dish that is popular in both England and the United States. It is a staple ingredient in meatballs and sauces in Turkey, Iran, and India, where it enjoys massive levels of popularity.
• The Indian condiment known as chutney often contains mint, as does the yogurt-based sauce known as raita. The Indians have a preference for combining mint with other strong spices like chiles, coconut, and green mango. When making the spicy noodle dish known as laksa, which is popular in Malaysia, mint is sometimes combined with galangal and other aromatic spices. The plant is, without a doubt, necessary for the preparation of Greek tzatzkiki.

Mint nutrition values and health benefits

1. Despite the fact that it is not often consumed in large quantities, mint offers a substantial number of nutrients that are beneficial to the body. It is difficult to take even a third of a cup’s worth of the herb due to its vivid flavour, which is why it is usually employed in small amounts while recipes are being prepared. There are certain salad recipes that call for mint as one of the components, and it is possible that you may acquire close to this amount of mint from such recipes, but it is not guaranteed.
2. To be more specific, mint is a rich source of vitamin A, which is a fat-soluble vitamin that is necessary for preserving healthy eyes and adequate night vision. Mint is a great source of vitamin A. In addition to that, it is a fantastic source of antioxidants, especially when compared to other spices and herbs. Antioxidants are helpful in protecting your body from oxidative stress, which is a kind of cell damage caused by free radicals and which may be detrimental to your health. Antioxidants do this by assisting in the body’s defence against oxidative stress.
3. Many individuals suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (also known as IBS), a condition that affects the digestive tract. The existence of the illness may be determined by the presence of digestive symptoms such as pain in the stomach, gas, bloating, and changes in the patterns of bowel movements. In addition to making changes to one’s diet and taking medicine, research shows that persons who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome may benefit from ingesting peppermint oil as an alternative treatment in the form of a herbal remedy.
4. Menthol, which is found in peppermint oil, is a substance that is thought to be helpful in the treatment of IBS symptoms by relaxing the muscles of the digestive system and the gastrointestinal tract. Menthol may be found in peppermint oil. It is important to note that oil capsules, rather than raw mint leaves, were used in practically all of the trials that revealed an improvement in IBS symptoms.
5. The usage of mint as a cure for other digestive ailments, such as stomach aches and indigestion, may also prove to be useful to the patient. Indigestion may occur if food is allowed to sit in the stomach for an abnormally long period of time before moving on to the other parts of the digestive system. According to the findings of a number of studies, those who take peppermint oil with their meals have a faster transit of food through the stomach. This, in turn, may help to ease the symptoms that are linked with this kind of indigestion.
6. It has been hypothesised that inhaling the aroma of the essential oils found in mint, in addition to ingesting the herb, may confer additional health benefits, including improved cognitive ability.
7. According to the findings of one study, inhaling these oils while driving increased concentration while concurrently reduced the levels of aggravation, anxiety, and weariness that participants experienced. On the other hand, the favourable effects of peppermint oil on brain function have not been shown in every research that has been conducted.
8. One piece of study found that the aroma of the oil was energising and made participants feel less tired, but it had no effect on their ability to think clearly. Additional research is necessary to identify whether or not peppermint really enhances brain function and to have a better understanding of how peppermint may work.
9. Consuming mint normally does not result in any negative side effects and is safe for the vast majority of individuals. Allergies to mint are unusual. People who are allergic to mint may get asthma symptoms as a result of an interaction with the plant if they come into contact with it. Due to this particular reason, those who are sensitive to mint should steer clear of it totally.

100 g of mint has 70 calories (292 kJ), 3.8 g protein, 0.9 g fat, and 15 g carbs, including 8 g fibre.

How to store mint and how to buy them

• It is important to know how to preserve mint correctly so that you may enjoy the same level of mint’s freshness each time you use it. Mint is a versatile plant that lends a calming taste to the foods and beverages you prepare. Mint has a rather limited shelf life of about two to three days when kept at room temperature; however, you may extend its shelf life by storing it in the refrigerator or even by freezing it.
• If you want to keep mint leaves fresh, you can store them in a jar of water. To do this, take a small jar and fill it with water, then dip the stems of the mint leaves into the water. Cover the jar with a plastic bag, but make sure the bag does not compress the leaves, as this can damage their texture. Finally, place the jar in the refrigerator, and change the water every two days or whenever it becomes cloudy. This ensures that the mint leaves have a shelf life of seven days.
• It is recommended that you do not wash mint before storing it because doing so can cause it to spoil. Instead, take a kitchen towel or napkin and dampen it with cold water, then wrap it around the stalks of mint leaves. Finally, place this into an airtight plastic bag, and refrigerate it. Mint can be used for up to a week if it is stored properly. Washing mint before storing it is not necessary.
• If you wish to keep using mint for an extended period of time, you may keep it in a dried condition; to accomplish this, you can use a dehydrator, the microwave, or simple ways that include air-drying it. For either technique, you should begin by removing the leaves from the stalk, laying them out on a baking sheet, and then placing the tray into either a dehydrator or a microwave and following the instructions provided by the appliance.
• It has been shown that freezing mint may increase its shelf life by more than six months; you can freeze it to keep it for a long period. There are two different ways to keep mint leaves: either as entire leaves or by placing them in an ice cube tray.
  1. First, remove the leaves from the stalk and wash them. Then, arrange the leaves in a single layer on a baking sheet to prevent them from sticking to each other. Place the baking tray in the freezer for one night, and then put the leaves that have frozen into individual freezer bags.
  2. After washing the leaves, place them in an ice cube tray so that each leaf is kept in its own individual cube. Next, fill these cubes up to the halfway point with water and freeze them. Another approach follows the same steps up to the point when the leaves are washed.
• Your meals will taste much more serene with fresh mint leaves, but you will need to preserve them correctly so they do not lose their crispness. They will go bad if the proper precautions are not taken to keep them. Because stale mint leaves are not safe for human consumption, you should always examine the texture of the mint leaves before using them in any of your culinary creations. Mint leaves that have gone bad will exhibit certain physical changes.
  1. Check the mint leaves that you want to purchase to see if any of them have any brown spots; if you do, you should not purchase them since this indicates that mould has grown on the leaves.
  2. Always take a whiff before purchasing mint leaves; if there is a foul stench coming out of the leaves, this is the indicator that they have gone bad and should not be used. Fresh mint leaves give off a reviving perfume.
  3. If the texture of the mint leaves is not perky and they feel mushy when you touch them, this is a sign that the mint leaves have begun to go bad. Fresh mint leaves have a perky look.

Cooking techniques, secrets, and tips from the kitchen

1. Fresh mint leaves, either still attached to the stalk or removed from it, may be added to either hot or cold drinks in the most straightforward method possible. You may also “muddle” the mint, which means to crush it, to unleash even more of its taste. Mint may be chopped coarsely, finely, or sliced into tiny ribbons depending on your preference (chiffonade). Add mint to vegetable salads, pesto’s, salsas, sauces, marinades, and grain or pasta salads of various types. Sliced garden vegetables, such as tomatoes and cucumbers, topped with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of kosher salt are enhanced with the addition of fresh mint.
2. When making a sauce or stew, dried mint leaves may be added at the end of the cooking process. When preparing a meal, add dried mint early on so that the herbs have time to release their flavour, but add fresh mint toward the end of the cooking process so that the flavour maintains its intensity.
3. Just try to picture this: chocolate and mint, but without the excessive amounts of sugar and fat that are found in mint chocolate chip ice cream. If you want to add some wonderful diversity to your chocolate protein smoothie, try adding three to four fresh mint leaves. Blending ice, water, chocolate protein powder, flax seeds, and fresh mint in the blender is one of my favourite things to do. It is not only delicious but also beneficial to one’s health. In addition, mint is a wonderful addition to berry smoothies. To tell you the truth, I have never seen a smoothie that mint did not improve.
4. The use of fresh mint is an excellent technique to give mint sauce and mint jelly an extra kick. If you have never had a condiment that contains mint before, you should know that there is a subtle difference between the two. Mint jelly has more of a sugar content, whereas mint sauce has more of a vinegar basis. Traditional cuisines from the Middle East and South India, as well as those based on lamb, sometimes include sauces or jellies that are flavoured with mint.
5. The use of mint simple syrup is an excellent method for imparting a minty and invigorating taste to flavoured iced teas as well as drinks. In a dish or saucepan that is safe for heat, combine one half cup of sugar with three quarters of a cup of mint leaves. Next, pour one half cup of boiling water over the mixture and swirl it to dissolve the sugar. After the sugar has been completely dissolved, you should let the liquid 10-15 minutes to steep before filtering it into a container. If you store your homemade mint simple syrup in the refrigerator, it will maintain its flavour for up to two weeks.
6. A few of the flavours that go well with mint include apricot, cauliflower, coconut, garlic (particularly when mixed with other spices like allspice), mango, orange, and strawberry. Mint is also a good complement to a variety of other fruits and vegetables. Amongst other foods, mint is delicious when combined with barley, chickpeas, lamb, and fish.

History of mint from the beginning until today

• Since the time of the ancient Egyptians, this plant has been used as a treatment for digestive issues. In point of fact, dehydrated leaves of peppermint were discovered in Egyptian pyramids that dated back to the year 1000 B.C.
• Both the ancient Greeks and Romans appreciated it for its ability to calm an upset stomach. In Western Europe, peppermint gained popularity as a folk cure throughout the eighteenth century. It was used to treat a variety of ailments, including nausea, vomiting, morning sickness, respiratory infections, and menstrual irregularities.
• According to diet books written in the late 1500s, drinking mint juice may have been helpful in cases of poisoning, and eating the mint plant fresh may have promoted the circulation of healthy blood. It was believed that the powder of mint might help in the process of destroying worms in the stomach, and that this remedy, when combined with milk, could even be used on newborns for this reason.
• In 1721, peppermint was included for the very first time in the London Pharmacopoeia. It is now recommended in the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia for the treatment of intestinal colic, gas, colds, morning sickness, and menstrual discomfort.
• Beginning in the nineteenth century, North America saw the development of an established market for mint. In spite of the fact that the soil-borne virus known as Verticillium dahlia caused the production of mint oil to be relocated from the Midwest to the Pacific Northwest in the 1920s, the amount of commercial mint grown continued to increase.
• A plant may have a far more lasting presence in our life, as shown by the history of mint, which demonstrates how a plant can be associated with something as fleeting as mouth care in the modern day. Mint has been put to use by humans for thousands of years, and not only for tooth cleaning. In fact, the whole plant, not just the oil, has been used.
• Northern African and Arab Touareg tea requires mint. Arabs drink tea this way. Mint juleps and mojitos employ mint as a flavouring or garnish. The grasshopper and mojito use mint-flavored crème de menthe.
• Mint essential oil and menthol are found in breath fresheners, drinks, anti-septic mouth rinses, toothpaste, and chewing gum. Mint candies and chocolates include mint. Pulegone, together with menthol, gives the mints their unique odours and tastes (in pennyroyal and Corsican mint). L-carvone makes spearmint smell and flavour.