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Is Anyone Familiar w/this Herb?

this is my first post so bear with me.

i went to the market today and picked up an herb called *tara*.. since my name is tara i thought it would be neat to cook with it, but i can't find a single reference to this herb at ALL online.

so i figured who would know better than my fellow chowhounders.

it looks like the tops of green onion... only more rigid and i haven't tasted it yet.

i found it at an ethnic market and that's usually the only place i ever see it.

any help would be appreciated!

i can attach a photo if that would help.


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  1. What type of ethnic market, that might help.
    If you can upload a picture, that would be good, too.
    Otherwise, I'd ask the produce manager, or someone at the market.

    1 Reply
    1. re: wyogal

      thanks wyogal for the quick response.

      this time i got it at the super king in glassel park. it's primarily armenian, hispanic although a lot of asian people shop there as well. i've seen it before at the jon's market over on vermont which caters mostly to armenian and hispanic as well.

      i tried to ask the guy at super king a little more about the herb, but if you've ever been to that market, you know it's nearly impossible to get anyone to speak to you lol.

      so i just bought it. it was only .99 cents a bunch so i figured what the hell.. at worst maybe i can feed it to my rats.

      well, once i know what it is.

      i like these sorta culinary adventures though with new ingredients, but i don't even know where to start!

      i'll take a pic of it in like an hour, i have a writing deadline in 30 minutes.

      thanks again & stay tuned for the pic!

    2. hmmmm... When you rub the leaves between your fingers, do they release a sort of licoricey aroma? If the answer is yes, then there's a very high chance that "tara" is a colloqiuial name for tarragon. Tarragon is very popular in Armenia (and that general region of the world) for seasoning teas and soft drinks, as well as for cooking. This would be my best guess.

      When and if you find out for sure, tell us, please! '-)

      10 Replies
      1. re: Caroline1

        it's not tarragon. i'm familiar with that herb. i did taste it, and it tastes like leeks or chives. the stems sorta feel like that of a leek. i'm not sure if the picture captured it well enough for anyone to help me figure it out.

        basically it looks like blades of overgrown grass or stiff green onion tops. they're flat and not hollow like green onions are. it tastes like leek/chives and sorta smells herbaceous like grass.

        i'm not sure what they are, but i bet it would taste OK in a potato soup or something that would call for leeks. i wish i knew what these were.


          1. re: YummyCubanita

            Lucky! If it's the same thing I'm thinking about, we have that in Iran, and it's called "tarreh" in Persian. In the family of leeks, scallions, chives. People serve it up on plates of mixed herbs served alongside meals, or put it in ghormeh sabzi, a mixed herb stew that's pretty much the universal favorite dish among Iranians.

            1. re: rose water

              awesome, i knew this would be the place to find out.. lol

              yeah, i would definitely say it's in the leek/chive family. i did a quick google search of 'tarreh' and i pulled up a few hits. the markets here always spell it tara.

              i've been seeing this herb for months and never bought it because i could never find any info on it... so now i know.

              thanks guys!!

          2. re: Caroline1

            actually i should add.. i don't *think* it's tarragon. i really don't know what it is, but it doesn't taste like tarragon..

            1. re: YummyCubanita

              not tarragon, but I bet rose water hit on it, terreh.

              1. re: wyogal

                Yup. Sounds like rose water hit a home run. Interesting! Using rose water's "ghormeh sabzi" in a recipe search, I found the following recipe that says "tareh" is garlic chives.


                The bonus is we also learn that fenugreek is called "shanbelileh" in Farsi. Who knew?

                Good show!

                1. re: Caroline1

                  I knew! Now if only we could find fresh tarreh and shambelileh here with 1/2 the flavor of the stuff you find in Iran....

                  1. re: rose water

                    Wishful thinking! And I'll wish right along with you. <sigh>

                  2. re: Caroline1

                    If it's garlic chives, they're really easy to grow like chives. If you have a root end, stick it in the soil and it'll multiply. You'll have enough to share in a year or two. :)

            2. I agree it looks like the leaves of some allhttps://www.google.com/search?q=chinese+chive.... Like leaves of green garlic or Chinese chives

              , or leaves of elephant garlic. Try posting in the garden forum, or gardenweb.com, kitchen or herb garden.

              1. I didn't read all the way through but those look a whole lot like garlic chive to me.

                1. They are garlic chives, I agree with mamachef

                  3 Replies
                  1. re: butzy

                    Rose water nailed it upthread.

                    1. re: wyogal

                      Thanks. I don't always read through before I get all excited about knowing something and just jump on in there. It's happened before; it'll happen again undoubtedly.