Basil is an important culinary herb. It comes in many varieties throughout the world, including the sweet basil often seen in Western cuisine and the Thai basil (known in Taiwan as jiu ceng ta) widely used in Asian cuisine.
Jiu ceng ta literally means “nine-story padoga,” used to refer to the varieties cultivated in Taiwan. Thai basil has a stronger aroma and is commonly used in Taiwanese style stir fries and snacks. It goes well with spicy, robust dishes.
Sweet basil is the most common type of basil used in Western cuisine. It looks similar to Thai basil, but its leaves are rounder and its taste lighter and subtler, with a hint of sweetness to it. One classic way to cook it is to mix sweet basil with olive oil, garlic, pine nuts and seasonings to make Italian pesto.
PHOTO: PIXABAY
照片:PIXABAY
Sweet basil and Thai basil are of different types: they have different flavors and hence are suitable for different dishes. If you were to make pesto with Thai basil, its taste would turn out to be too astringent and too strong. So next time you fancy making a genuine pesto, be sure to tell the vendor that you want to buy sweet basil.
(Liberty Times, translated by Lin Lee-kai)
羅勒是製作料理的重要香草,依地區又分成許多品種,包括歐美料理常見的甜羅勒,以及大量運用於亞洲料理的九層塔。
PHOTO: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
照片:維基共享資源
「九層塔」為台語,用來指稱台灣栽培的羅勒品種,香氣比較濃厚,普遍用於台式熱炒、小吃料理中,適合與辛辣、重口味的菜肴搭配。
而西餐料理中最常使用的羅勒則是「甜羅勒」,外型類似九層塔,不過甜羅勒的葉片比較圓胖,且口味清爽、細緻不少,帶有些許的甜味。最經典的料理方式是把甜羅勒與橄欖油、蒜頭、松子及調味料混和做成義大利青醬。
兩種羅勒的品種、風味不同,適合不同的料理,所以若把台灣的九層塔拿來製作青醬,口感就會比較澀,氣味也過於強烈。所以下次如果想製作正統的青醬,採買時記得特別跟老闆說明,你要的是「甜羅勒」!(自由時報記者陳凱詩)
PHOTO: PIXABAY
照片:PIXABAY
The strongest earthquake to hit Taiwan in 25 years killed at least 16 people and damaged dozens of buildings, but the destruction was largely contained thanks to decades of preparedness work. Taiwan sits on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic activity along the Pacific Rim, and — much like neighboring Japan — has a long history of catastrophic quakes. How does April 3 compare with other recent quakes? The April 3 earthquake, which measured 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale, was felt across Taiwan. It was the most severe since a 7.6 magnitude quake in 1999 killed
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Around the time of the Dragon Boat Festival in June, the streets of Taiwan are filled with the delightful aroma of zongzi, a traditional snack made of sticky rice wrapped in leaves. The leaves are folded into a cone and then filled with sticky rice and other ingredients such as braised pork belly, peanuts and salted duck egg yolks. The filled leaves are then tightly tied with kitchen twine and ready for cooking. 每到六月端午時節,街頭巷尾就會飄出粽子的香氣。粽子是將糯米包進粽葉的傳統美食,先將粽葉折成圓錐狀塞入糯米,以及紅燒肉、花生、鹹鴨蛋黃等配料,用棉線綁緊後即可烹煮。 Dragon Boat Festival (n. phr.) 端午節 aroma
It’s another school day with the same ritual. You wake up to your smartphone’s alarm, scroll through messages during your commute, and listen to your favorite playlist with your wireless earbuds between classes. These devices, integrated smoothly into your daily routine, certainly make life more convenient. However, where do these devices end up after you replace them? In fact, the issue of electronic waste is a growing global concern. According to the United Nations, in 2019 alone, we generated an astonishing 53.6 million tons of e-waste—an average of 7.3kg per person. Projections hint at the figure soaring to 110