Cleaning coriander plants

The fresh leaves are an essential ingredient in many South Asian foods and particularly for Thai dishes. Chopped coriander leaves are also used as a garnish on cooked dishes such as dal and many curries. As heat diminishes their flavour quickly, coriander leaves are often used raw or added to the dish right before serving.
Coriander leaves were formerly common in European cuisine but nearly disappeared before the modern period. Today western Europeans usually eat coriander leaves only in dishes that originated in foreign cuisines, except in Portugal, where it is still an essential ingredient in many traditional dishes.