Suggestions for using mint in savoury recipes

I'm starting to get quite a bit of various types of mint at my place and would like to make better use of it. I can think of lots of sweet applications, but I don't eat much sweet stuff. The only savoury things I really use mint in are tabbouleh type salads and cucumber salads.

What savoury foods do you like using mint in?

Try subbing mint for basil in tomato-based recipes

Hopefully I get lots of tomatoes this year! I've learned not to count on it though🙄 I mostly eat them chopped up with some herbs as a salad, and I could see mint going well in there.

I've got some oregano that takes on quite a minty flavour when dried. The first time I used it was in a tomato based bean and vegetable soup I've made many variations of. The mintyness was.... off-putting and my husband stopped eating it. I ate the rest, but it wasn't the best soup I've ever had. In future I'll sprinkle a bit into a serving rather than the whole batch.

I ran across a cucumber Soup in a French cookbook a few years back. I no longer have that book. The recipe was a cooked soup, intended to be served cold.

Here is a no cook version.

That sounds pretty good, Joylynn! I have a cold cucumber soup kinda thing I used to make quite a bit. I'll try some mint in it.

What about mint jelly?  

Seems to me that I remember it also being used in a sauce, like a cream sauce.

Maybe substitute mint for a recipe that calls for rosemary.

My favourite savoury mint dish, hands down, is sheet pan tandoori chicken and cauliflower . Topped with fresh mint.
Also mint chutney is a great use of fresh mint.

What do you use mint jelly and mint chutney for?

I know mint jelly is traditionally paired with lamb and peas. Anything else it's used for?

The Indian restaurant I used to go to quite often always had mint chutney on the table (like ketchup at a diner), but it was too spicy for me, so I never tried it with anything.

It seems like mint could go well with potatoes. Does anyone do that?

You are absolutely right regarding mint and potatoes, Jan. My copy of The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins is permanently stained and dog-eared on page 275, for the recipe "Minty Roasted Potatoes" copied here:

8 red new potatoes scrubbed and patted dry
1/4 c olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 T coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
2. Prick the potatoes with the tines of a fork and arrange them on a baking sheet. Bake for 1 1/2 hours.
3. Cut the potatoes into quarters and place them in a serving bowl. While they are still hot, toss them with the oil, coarse salt, pepper, and garlic.
4. Gently toss in the mint. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Seriously fantastic recipe that I make every time I want potatoes during mint season. This recipe says that it serves 4 but really, only 2 at my house. Measure the ingredients the first time you make this and don't skimp on the olive oil and coarse salt. Next time, follow your taste buds.

byriani and many other indian and middle eastern/north African dishes use a lot of mint. Tatziki and raitia as well.

1) Mint chutney, mint chutney!

A friend of mine recently made it with
Mint leaves
Cilantro
Peanuts
Green chillies (I guess you could substitute a little green pepper instead)
Salt

Ground fine in the blender.

Yum! I wanted to eat it with everything but it got finished too soon.

Whenever I've tried to make it with yogurt I haven't really liked the result very much.

2) Something I've seen in India is green lemonade: lemon juice and mint in the blender, then sweetened to taste. Very nice!

3) Mint does proliferate, dunnit! Some years I've cut it right down in mid-season and used it for mulch.

Jan White wrote:What do you use mint jelly and mint chutney for?

I know mint jelly is traditionally paired with lamb and peas. Anything else it's used for?

The Indian restaurant I used to go to quite often always had mint chutney on the table (like ketchup at a diner), but it was too spicy for me, so I never tried it with anything.

A perfect reason to make some of your own mint chutney! just adjust or omit the hot ingredients to suit your taste. It's a nice sauce on Aloo Tikki, Samosas, or Pakoras.

You could also make a Chimichurri using mint.

Moroccan mint tea, though it isn't savory in the slightest but oh so good.

Kenneth Elwell wrote:It's a nice sauce on Aloo Tikki

Potatoes and peas, again!

Okay, I'm starting to harvest potatoes now, so they'll be my first thing to try.

Thanks, everyone! I've got some ideas now.

another idea is kibbeh, generally made with ground beef or lamb, sometimes wheat (like bulgur) and mint, sometimes also oregano. It can be made into little torpedos and fried, pushed into a pan and baked and cut into squares, or if you have really good quality meat, eaten raw like steak tartare. The mint is important to the flavor!

(not savory, but in the interest of using your bounty of mint: we also make lots of juice with fruit and mint. Mint and pineapple [using the peels and off-cuts of a good pineapple] is classic in my house, but mint and watermelon or mint and peach, mint and grapefruit also make nice juices, lemonade style).

Yeah, juiced watermelon and mint is probably what I use the most mint in right now. Sooooo good!

Use mint with any lamb recipe. They go together very well. Here's what Google has to say: https://www.google.com/search?q=recipes+that+use+mint&oq=recipes+that+use+mint&aqs=chrome..69i57.8969j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Tons of ways to use mint in addition to cooking with it.

Jan White wrote:What do you use mint jelly and mint chutney for?

I know mint jelly is traditionally paired with lamb and peas. Anything else it's used for?

The Indian restaurant I used to go to quite often always had mint chutney on the table (like ketchup at a diner), but it was too spicy for me, so I never tried it with anything.

You can cut the mint chutney with yoghurt and use it as a sauce for chicken, pork, lamb or veg.
Make it a bit runnier and use it as a dressing for salads, Pokora or Samosa.
You can add the mint chutney to a lassi -- an Indian drink made of yoghurt cut with water or even soda water. Add a pinch of salt to it as well.  You may find it in Indian restaurants as salty lassi.
Add it to your chicken soup for a breath of fresh air. Potentially good in Filipino pork soup too.
If you're making your own toothpaste, mint is a good addition.  I think you can also create a mouth wash with it. At least you can chew a few leaves to help eliminate bad breath.
Become a bartender!  Muddle it in a glass with ice, then add water for a refreshing drink anytime. (I prefer mine with bourbon).
I was surprised to learn you can use it as an insect repellent. Apparently rubbing the leaves on your skin is enough of a turn off to mozzies that they won't bite, but check to make sure you're not allergic.  

You can never go wrong with Turkish Red Lentil soup.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6p8qHs8WGA
Ingredients:

► Turkish Lentil Soup Recipe
2 Tbsp olive oil
1-2 Tbsp butter, up to you
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 potato, peeled and diced
200g of any lentils you like, red or yellow lentils are traditional
1l water or stock
salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp dried mint
sprinkle of msg ✨ (optional)
LEMON SLICE!
paprika oil
parsley for garnish
dollop of yoghurt (optional)

there’s a dish from yunnan that’s beef stirfried with chilies and ginger, then chopped mint and cilantro, then a bit of soy sauce. simple and good.

Pesto.

Blend olive oil, hemp hearts, mint and/or basil, garlic, lemon, salt to taste.

cheese, pine/walnuts, etc. optional: the hemp hearts general cover that end. (In fact I know some who also use hemp oil and hemp leaves. Ahemp.)

Falafel! Mixed into the dough, it takes it to another level. Yum!

-- Kofta kebab

1 lb lean ground beef
-1/3 cup finely chopped Fresh Mint
1/4 cup very finely chopped red onion
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 tsp ground cumin
-1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

grind onion, either in food processor or by grating on fine side of box grater (you want a paste and the juice)
add rest of spices, mix with beef until well mixed, this will be a very soft mixture because of the onion juice

To grill
form logs of the mixture onto flat skewers or double bamboo skewers
To pan fry  form into patties or logs

serve with pita or any flat bread (i like to grill flour tortillas until they're puffy and use them)

-- Mojito: muddle mint with lime 1 tablespoon Sugar (or to taste)
add 1 ounce light rum and top with club soda
serve over ice

-- Virgin Mojito: muddle mint with lime 1 tablespoon Sugar (or to taste)
add half green tea and half club soda or seltzer
serve over ice

-- Mint simple syrup:
bring equal parts sugar and water to a boil, once sugar is dissolved remove from heat. add a couple sprigs of mint and let steep until cool, strain out mint, excellent in drinks, desserts (pour over shaved ice) and in fruit salad especially watermelon

mint is great with pungent flavors like feta and mutton and also good with bright/tart refreshing flavors like citrus and berries
and lastly you can always dry mint to make tea with

So many great suggestions!

That lentil soup is right up my alley, Shelley. When soup season comes around I'll try it.

So I made a...chusto, I suppose. A chutney pesto kinda deal with sunflower seeds and lime juice. It was surprisingly bland, actually. The mint really mellowed out in  the food processor.  Or maybe the smell  of it just burned out my senses 😁 I didn't have time to tweak it much, so I just ate it as it was over steamed potatoes. Still pretty good. So potatoes and mint are in the rotation, now.

Fresh Mint washed and dried (in the shade not in direct sun light) then placed into a bottle of vinegar.
let seat in a warm place out of the sun, turn the bottle under side down and then upright every other day for about three weeks or more to make a mint vinegar.
Can add thyme, rosemary to the vinegar. Makes a tasty vinegar to add to salads, cooking or add one cup of water to a teaspoon (or less) of vinegar for refreshing summer drink.

Do drinks count? Peppermint schnapps is what I use it for:
Start with making an extract, using the cheapest Vodka:
https://www.myfrugalhome.com/how-to-make-peppermint-extract/
from there, you can make peppermint liqueur or Schnapps
https://thethingswellmake.com/homemade-peppermint-liqueur/
Peppermint oil awakens the mind, plus it smells wonderful.
https://www.organicfacts.net/recipe/peppermint-oil
With a bit of baking soda, you can make a very acceptable mouthwash:
https://littlegreendot.com/kitchen-making-series-diy-peppermint-mouthwash/
While they recommend making sure you buy essential oil of peppermint, the flavor is strong enough.