I went to one of my favorite lunch places today and had a small helping of something called “Tuna Tarragon.” It was surprisingly good. I say that because years ago I made a seafood dish where Tarragon was the primary spice and today I realized I have been carrying an unjustified grudge for more than 30 years.
The recipe was described with comments that this was a favorite of the author’s family, that her kids often begged her to make it. I don’t know if I made a mistake in the preparation or not, but it was horrible, probably the worst think I have ever made. I tracked the horrible taste down to the tarragon and have never since made anything that included tarragon among its list of ingredients.
To be honest with you, I was quite surprised at how pleasant the “Tuna Tarragon” was. I would describe the flavor as refreshing or spring-like. I am looking forward to returning there and getting a more sizable helping next time.
All these years I have blamed the terrible taste of that dish on the tarragon, and although it might have been the culprit, the real blame probably should rest upon the shoulders of the cook who prepared the dish. It was probably due to a mistake on his part. Now, I wish I had not thrown that recipe away, because I would like to try it again. Maybe the result would be different.
This has me thinking that there are probably a number of other “grudges” I have been carrying that maybe it’s time to reopen the investigation to try to determine where the real “crime” lies or if the “judgment” was or is justified.
This also has me thinking about how long we hold onto things. For instance, I purchase the tarragon just for that recipe and you might have thought I would have tossed the stuff when I tossed the recipe, but I didn’t. I held onto it partly because it was completely paid for, partly because there was only a tablespoon taken from it, partly because it was a respected spice in the same league with other well known spices such as: sage, savory, and rosemary; and partly because I hoped to discover something prepared by someone else that contained tarragon so I could find out if the stuff really was not worth keeping.
That little bottle of spice remained in my spice rack for more than 20 years before I threw it out! Twenty years!
As I’m writing this I’m thinking I should go check my spice rack and toss any other spices that are well past their prime. While I’m at it, maybe I should also toss out some of the other things that I no longer have any desire to use such as that bottle of mincemeat a friend gave me about five years ago after I commented that a slice of mincemeat pie heaped high with whipped cream can be a special treat once in awhile. I meant “once in a great-while,” but she didn’t hear it like that. There are just too many other pies that I like better.
While I’m at it there are those clothes that I’ve been holding onto, thinking I might be able to get back down to 140 pounds again and be able to wear them again. Of course, I’ve been thinking that for almost as long as I’ve disliked tarragon!
Then there are the boxes of old papers, bills and receipts that the income tax people aren’t going to care about any more than I do.
Gosh, I’m wearing myself out just thinking about this and you know what? I’m beginning to think that maybe I should continue not liking tarragon.
