As you await your order of taco carnitas along the beach stand in the Yucatan (Mexico), you get a whiff of the refreshingly bright green, freshly chopped cilantro garnish.Coriander leaf, known as cilantro in the U.S. and Latin America, is also referred to as Mexican parsley or Chinese parsley. Since ancient times it has been used as a medicinal herb by Egyptians, Romans and Greeks and still touted for its role in regulating blood sugar and controlling obesity. A versatile herb, it is used as a garnish or pureed and added to cooking sauces for color and flavor in Asian, Latin American, Middle Eastern and North African dishes. It adds an intense flavor to samosa fillings, as toppings for tacos, tagines and bhelpuris, pureed or chopped and added to curries with chicken, fish, meat and vegetables, while brightening salads, chutneys, salsas, or soups.With its citrusy notes, cilantro plays an important rolein Latin American ceviches, guacamoles, and green salsas, Thai green curry, Malaysian kurma, Middle Eastern fiery zhugs, Moroccan harira, and Indian dhania chicken.