Rue the day: Of onions (was: of snails and slugs)

Okay doke.  After all this culinary discussion, I've
got to ask a question that's been on my mind for a while.
What is "rue" and what do you do with it?  I found it
at an herb store and I planted it in my garden and it's
flourishing.  It apparently comes from Greek rhuta,
origin unattested, and it has nothing to do with the
verb "to rue," although I might take that back.  It
has an aromatic, oily aroma that smells like dusty
peaches when you crumble the leaf in your hand
(dusty green leaves, rounded, deeply invaginated,
very pretty, yellow flowers).  It tastes bitter, but
has an underlying flavor that seems to compliment
stews.  Can't compare the flavor to anything.

Well, I've cut this thing up and put it in various
stews, and I've thought of making it a Teonaht
staple.  Wait, silly, I thought.  Let's do some research
here.  I went to the web and looked it up.  I got
various and contradictory results:  1) "Aromatic
plant used in ancient times for medicinal purposes."
2) "Aromatic herb once used as a soporific, an anti-
aphrodisiac, and an abortificient if taken in large
quantities."  3) "Oily plant used in gardens, not
recommended for internal use, highly toxic."  4)
Medicinal and culinary herb, makes a nice addition
to salads if used sparingly.  5)  Called "the bitterest
of herbs."  Used commonly in Middle Eastern cooking
as a spice."

We haven't been poisoned, and the taste is strangely
original.  So, what to do?  Add it to the Teonaht
spice list?  Use it?  Avoid it?  After all, nutmeg is
poisonous, too, and can induce hallucinations and
toxicity if taken in concentrated form.

Have any of you ever come across this herb and used
it culinarily--or heard of it used this way?  Or even
heard of it?

Teonaht:  hrota.   Pom ain esy o miaanteht de.
               'xrut@
               Rue.    With it  you will sparingly do.
                            "Use it sparingly"

Sally Caves
scaves@frontiernet.net


----- Original Message -----
From: John Cowan <cowan@...>
To: <CONLANG@...>
Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2001 7:13 AM
Subject: CHAT: Of onions (was: of snails and slugs)


> Christophe Grandsire scripsit:
>
> > Yeah, shallots too, that's true. Never heard of using green onions, but
again
> > they are not that easy to find in France.
>
> There appears to be irredeemable confusion in English terminology here.
> M-w.com defines "shallot" as 1) Allium cepa aggregatum, 2) a green
(non-bulbous)
> onion, Allium cepa.
>
> But then it defines "scallion" as 1) a shallot, 2) a leek (Allium
ampeloprasum),
> 3) a green onion!
>
> Personally, I treat "scallion" and "green onion" as interchangeable, and
> shallots and leeks as something different.
>
> --
> John Cowan                                   cowan@ccil.org
> One art/there is/no less/no more/All things/to do/with sparks/galore
>         --Douglas Hofstadter
>

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