Purple basil
Ocimum basilicum 'Purpurascens' · Herb
Top 10 pairings
Purple basil is the ornamental sweet basil grown for its striking deep burgundy-purple, anthocyanin-rich leaves rather than for the green colour of Italian basil. Its flavour is a touch milder and less sweet than Genovese, leaning more clearly toward clove and anise with a soft herbal-green base, and its richest use is visual — colouring salads, oils and above all vinegars, which it dyes a vivid pink-red.
Picking a good onedrag
Just cut, standing upLimp, blackened, slimy
Shop freshEveryday bestThe all-rounder: pesto, salads, finishing a sauce.
Leaf colourGreen, a few leaves cupping
The bunchSoft but still upright in the hand
Cut stemCut end drying, stem still stiff
Smell at the leafScent comes when a leaf is rubbed
These cues are Basil's, and hold across its varieties; where this one differs, its own page says so.
Keeping ittap a temperature
Skip the fridge. Below 12 °C the leaves brown, then blacken in a day or two.
95-100%
Humidity
Loose bag, not sealed
Airflow