Parsley is a bright, grassy herb, and flat-leaf is the usual choice for savoury cooking: it goes into shakshuka, croquettes, Sicilian roast potatoes, salmon patties and lemony sardine spaghetti. Chop the leaves and stir them in at the end, since long cooking dulls colour and flavour. The stems are tougher but full of taste, so mince them into sauces and stews.
Parsley is chopped twice if you want it fine, once to break it down and once more with the knife pinned at the tip.
1Choose: Flat-leaf parsley has the stronger flavour for cooking; curly holds its shape better as a garnish. Either way, look for bright leaves with no yellowing.
2Store: Stand the stems in a glass of water, loosely covered, in the fridge, or wrap the bunch in damp kitchen paper.
3Prep: Pile the leaves together, tuck your fingers back and roll-chop. For a finer chop, set the tip of the knife on the board, hold it down with your fingers and chop up and down like a guillotine over the pile.
4Cook: Stir leaves in at the very end so they stay green. Chop the stalks fine and add them earlier to sauces and stews, where they hold plenty of flavour.
Video: “Chopping a bunch of fresh herbs - Jamie Oliver's Home Cooking Skills” by Jamie Oliver on YouTube.
