How to make Bouquet garni

At this time of year the main herbs still available for picking such as parsley, sweet bay, thyme and sage are the ones which make a great bouquet garni.  This is traditionally used to introduce herb flavours into winter stews and casseroles.

There are many variations on the recipe so feel free to experiment with the herbs you have (the one in the photo consists of rosemary, sage, oregano and thyme).

A basic recipe is:
2 to 3 bay leaves
3 sprigs of thyme
1 bunch of parsley

Tie the herb stalks together with string or place in a small piece of muslin/a muslin bag and fasten securely at the top before adding to the pot.

The bouquet garni should be added at the beginning of the cooking and removed after one to two hours.

If you don't have fresh herbs you could still create a mixture of dried herbs placed into a muslin bag as above or just loose in the mixture if you don't mind the bits!

I'd love to hear what your favourite combinations are either here or on the new forum.