Roman chamomile

Camomille romaine

What it is

It is a different plant from the German chamomile of teabags: a creeping perennial once laid as a lawn you walked on to release the scent, and far more bitter in the mouth. French production settled around Chemillé in Anjou, where the double-flowered form is still grown for the whole head.

In the kitchen

Four or five heads to the litre, off the heat, five minutes at most — the bitterness climbs fast and a ten-minute infusion is undrinkable. It does more for a butter sauce for chicken than most cooks expect.

Goes with

Honey Cream Apple Lemon Chicken Butter Pear

In season alongside

Bergeron apricot Lingonberry Apricot Bee pollen Blueberry Calendula

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