Dill and its effects: flavour and health benefits
The delicate herb dill has an aromatic effect on your dishes. The tall-growing herb is also known colloquially as cucumber herb or sweet fennel. Dill originates from West Asia. Nowadays it is used throughout Europe to flavour dishes. We reveal the health effects dill can have and what vitamins and nutrients the herb contains.
Storage time*
| BioFresh Fruit & Vegetable safe just above 0 °C with high humidity | 13 days |
| EasyFresh safe 7 °C with air regulation plate | 6 days |
| Fridge compartment 7 °C | 3 days |
| Freezer compartment -18 °C | 10 months |
The key points
- Beneficial to your health: Dill contains minerals such as magnesium, phosphorus and potassium as well as essential oils that can have an anti-inflammatory effect.
- Easy to digest: The herb can have a beneficial effect on flatulence, loss of appetite and inner restlessness.
- Culinarily versatile: Ideal for fish dishes, cucumber salads, yoghurt dips, soups and pickled vegetables.
- Easy to grow: Dill grows in beds or pots, prefers semi-shady locations and is easy to freeze or store in the fridge.
Dill: Nutritional values and vitamins of the culinary herb
Dill contains many valuable nutrients that can have a positive effect on health. The leaves of dill contain minerals such as magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Dill is also said to have an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effect. This is mainly due to the essential oils it contains. These are mainly found in the dill seeds, but are also contained in smaller quantities in the leaves and stems of the plant.
As the nutrients in dill can have a positive effect on your health as well as on the flavour of your dishes, it is also worth growing your own. As an umbellifer, dill gets on best in a bed along with cucumber and beetroot. Also make sure that the planter used is sufficiently deep. This is because dill forms very deep-growing roots. However, the herb can also reach a considerable height of 30 to 75 centimetres. This unique herb prefers a semi-shady location. This means you can also grow dill indoors by the window. To achieve a strong dill flavour, you should harvest the dill before the cone flowers form. You can then use it frozen from your freezer. If you don’t want to use your fresh dill for a few days, you can store it in the BioFresh Fruit & Vegetable safe of your Liebherr fridgefor up to 13 days. The temperatures there are just above 0 °C with high air humidity.
How healthy is dill?
Dill is a real all-rounder in the kitchen as well as in terms of nutritional physiology. Dill can have a digestive effect as well as an antispasmodic and soothing effect on the gastrointestinal tract thanks to its natural plant substances. Dill is therefore the herb of choice for mild complaints such as flatulence or loss of appetite. Dill has also been valued as a household remedy for centuries – for example as a tea or infusion. Dill can also have a mild effect on the nervous system, which can have a soothing effect on inner restlessness or problems falling asleep. When eaten fresh, dill also has a special flavour that enhances many dishes.
The herb goes perfectly with fish dishes, especially salmon or matjes. The delicate flavour of dill is also particularly effective in cucumber salads or yoghurt dips. In Scandinavian and Eastern European cuisine, dill is often used in soups, stews and pickled vegetables. Even jacket potatoes, quark or egg dishes are given a pleasantly fresh flavour with a pinch of dill. In any event, dill has a positive effect – both in terms of flavour and health.
*All specifications given are to be considered as guideline values, and depend in each case on the type of foodstuffs and on the proper storage without interruption of the cold chain from harvest/production through to the Liebherr appliance. Should food products have information about minimum shelf life, the date on the packaging always applies.
