Burnet

Salad burnet (Sanguisorba minor) is a low, ferny perennial herb whose tender young leaves carry a bright, cucumber-like flavor. Once a staple of European kitchen gardens, it has a useful advantage over actual cucumber — its evergreen foliage stays harvestable well into cold weather, long after summer cucumbers are gone.

Growing Burnet

Burnet is unfussy and cold-hardy, tolerating poor soil and light shade better than most culinary herbs. It forms a neat, low rosette of feathery leaflets and stays evergreen through mild winters, making it one of the few fresh herbs you can still harvest from the garden after a frost. Regularly snipping the outer leaves keeps new growth tender and encourages a fuller plant.

Culinary Uses

Young burnet leaves add a fresh, cucumber-like note to salads, soft cheeses, and cold soups, and were traditionally steeped in wine and vinegar for the same bright flavor. Older leaves toughen and turn slightly bitter, so it's best to harvest the newest growth from the center of the rosette.