>make soup
>split it in half
>add bay leaf to one pot
>taste both
>same

Big Bay Leaf’s reign ends today.
This thread will mysteriously 404. (Mods are paid by Big Bay Leaf)

>>21424446 (OP)
The bay leaf has to simmer in it for a while you abject retard.

cant you people just buy fresh leaves

>>21424463
Theres no bays near me though

>>21424459
Didn't take long for the Big Bay Leaf reps to show up. Even if you let it simmer for 24 hours it doesn't make a difference.

>>21424465
grow it urself

>>21424465
Landlocked mfers be like

>>21424476
but it's not a bay leaf if you don't grow it at a bay you IMBECILE

>>21424446 (OP)
you didn't add enough or you used the wrong kind
it works trust me bro!

This guy is crazy, Bay Leaf changes everything in a meal, he just does not know how to cook. Please ignore his comments. I will be reporting this thread to the HR department in a moment.

>>21424568
>>21424588
Wtf are you guys talking about

leaf u /ck/

>>21424446 (OP)
If that's what thebay leaf you put in your soup looked like then of course it's not going to taste like anything. Most recipes that called for it only used one or two leaves because it's quite a pungent herb, but they were also assuming it fresh or nearly fresh. The flavourful compounds are quite volatile though, so if it's been dried out first, then sat on a shelf in some store in a plastic bag for god knows how long and then left in your cupboard you could probably dump the whole thing in and it wouldn't come close to a single fresh leaf.

Bay leaves are a complete meme. Something you throw in to seem cultured but really doesn't make any difference. Same as those wine snobs who claim they can totally taste the organic onions eaten by the cow who manured their favorite winery. Then you put them through a blind taste test and can't tell the difference between a $100 and $1000 bottle.

>>21424446 (OP)
This post is dangerous misinformation. Bay Leafs are essential to making a tasty soup

>>21424676
Misinformation. Please stop posting things like this, lying to people on the internet is not nice of you and is misleading. Bay leaves change the entire flavor profile of a meal and are a necessity in most cooking.

>>21424446 (OP)
Im glad I never fell for this scam. A leaf isn't going to add shit to the tasted.

Pic related is another scam. These leaves don't change the flavor at all.

>>21424688
This is a troll, ignore this guy's post.

>>21424676
Usually I'd say 'ok, retard' but you seem so upset.
Are you ok, retard?

>>21424688
If you can't taste basil something is seriously wrong.

It's really crazy how cheap and affordable bay leaves are. We should all go out and buy some to make delicious soups!

>>21424446 (OP)
Try to cook lentils with bay leaves, and then do them without. You will notice the difference. When I forget bay leaves they are way worse.
Also we put bay leaves in involtini alla palermitana, they give a beautiful scent to the meat

I wish I knew how cooking without bay leafs was like but i have a huge shrub that keeps growing and growing even through i cut it down ever so often. I have jars full of dried leafs

>tastelets being angry about being tastelets
Kek

>>21424966
I honor you, for you are rich in Bay

It's flavor is more pronounced if you heat it up before brewing it, either by dry roasting or adding to your aromatics in oil. You can also grind it into a powder and use it in a spice rub. You willl certainly taste it that way.

>>21424446 (OP)
I know someone who hates bayleaf and knows if it was added in the stew even if you remove it before serving

>Only the wise can taste it.

>>21424446 (OP)
I like to put a big bay leaf on my steak when I finish it in the oven :)

>>21424446 (OP)
Your little soup pots are literally builded for big bay leaves (build for BBL)

>>21424465
Just use old bay. It's the same stuff.

>>21424446 (OP)
Bay leaf is flavorless, it's only there to add color and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.

>>21425044
Is that person’s name Rick Bayless?

>>21424446 (OP)
Wanted to taste pure bay leaf, so I put a single store bay leaf in 2 cups of boiled water and let it stew in a thermos for a while. The tea didn't change much with more steeping time the day after. It did have flavor, like not minty or cardamom-y, but in that sort of ballpark, and it wasn't super strong.

If one bay leaf made 2 cups of light tea, a pot of stew is gonna need like at least 2 or 3 or 4 to be noticeable imo.

On the same topic, I saw some dried "Curry Leaves" as a temp product in the veggie isle, so I bought some and did the same experiment. Holy shit, this one truly did nothing. Maybe the store bought bad ones, idk.

>>21425708
Kek

>>21425724
Yeah those bay leaves had probably been sitting around dried for a while. A single dry bay leaf that's less than 6 months old is enough for a pot of stew, but much older than that and you'll need to increase the recipe amount. This is true for a lot of spices (pre-ground ones are particularly apt to lose potency) but for some reason it only comes up with bay leaves, while most people are content to follow unsuitable recipe instructions for every other spice. People should be more adventurous with spices and use them to taste.

Also if you like the taste of bay leaves, they make a decent liqueur for mixing. Soak fresh bay leaves with a few allspice berries in vodka and add sugar. The fresh ones have a somewhat more complex flavor than dried.

Lastly, I'm not surprised that the curry leaf aroma is volatile. Good curry leaves smell like gasoline, but less harsh. There's also a lot of confusion in recipes between curry leaf and another leaf that superficially resembles bay leaf. The latter is more properly called "tamala" and was used in Western medieval recipes sometimes as "malabathrum." Blogspam recipes will refer to both as "curry leaf" even though their aromas are absolutely nothing alike.

>>21424446 (OP)
Those bay leaves had probably been sitting around dried for a while. A single dry bay leaf that's less than 6 months old is enough for a pot of stew, but much older than that and you'll need to increase the recipe amount. This is true for a lot of spices (pre-ground ones are particularly apt to lose potency) but for some reason it only comes up with bay leaves, while most people are content to follow unsuitable recipe instructions for every other spice. People should be more adventurous with spices and use them to taste.

>>21424446 (OP)
This fucking douche has been shilling against bay leaves forever. Did you get cornholed with a laurel branch or what?

>>21424491
Hudson isn't completely gone yet. Go there, just watch out for needles.

>>21426314
It's all about that. Dried bay leaves are much less flavourful to start with and then most people don't use them very often so they can sit around for months or years afterwards because a bag usually has a lot of leaves.

To anyone wanting to use them and get the flavour I recommend getting some fresh and then keeping extra ones in the freezer. It will last much longer.

>>21424446 (OP)
I agree but only for dried bay leaves.

When you have a bay plant in your own garden and you use it fresh, it makes a ton of difference.

>>21424446 (OP)
I have a bay shrub in my garden. It feeds on sunlight.
I don't get played by big bay, I AM the player.

I made the same experiment with some broth.
Half the broth in a saucepan with bay leaves from my tree, half with no bay.

The one with bay leaves tasted very different, kind of herbal and floral.

>>21424446 (OP)
For me it's Kaffir lime leaves, that's were the flavor is at

>>21424446 (OP)
You add the bay leaves while cooking the onions in oil, dummy

They make a world of difference. Put one in your mouth and chew it, see if it has any flavour

Op probably one of those pro vaxx COVID suvivors with shot taste buds rip