It depends. It’s largely based on the chef and the dish. I likely wouldn’t leave bay leaves attached to a boiled meat dish, but I’d be more likely to leave them in a stew. Depending on the preparation they can still have a very strong flavor after cooling which might spoil the desired experience for the dish. They also remain very stiff even if cooked long periods and many find them unpleasant to eat. Actually bay leaves, unlike similar looking members of the same family, aren’t poisonous but because of how “tough” they are they can cause choking hazzards or other issues, even as frivolous as getting easily stuck in teeth. Most people will find eating bay leaves to be unpleasant at the least. Except where used for presentation, it’s generally best to remove them as after cooking they don’t really serve a functional addition to a dish, and as stated above have potential draw backs. It’s not however necessary and many dishes it may require prohibitive effort to remove them.
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