Fresh Herbs vs Dried

Peter

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• Publié par: find3ty
• Publié le: 28 août 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• Licence : En savoir +
  Paternité, partage des conditions initiales à l'identique
• Langue: English

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Fresh Herbs vs Dried—How to Choose

Fresh or Dried Herbs, When and How Much?

You’ve got guests coming for dinner tonight. And a new recipe to try.

But you’re stuck because the recipe says fresh herbs and you only have dry. Or it says dry and you only have fresh. What should you do?

Fresh herbs vs dried. How will you deal with that situation without ruining the meal and causing embarrassment for everyone?

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Don’t worry, because I’m about to soothe your troubled brow and walk you through the ins and outs of swapping from fresh to dry herbs or the other way around.

Follow the tips I have for you and you’ll know how to blow your guests away with the correct balance of herbs that your recipe promises will deliver in exciting aromas and flavors.

I can’t recall seeing any TV chef going into raptures over dried herbs.

They always seem to roll their eyes in delight at the wonderful qualities of whatever bunch of fresh, handpicked herbs they have for their demonstration. [Plunge nose into leaves, here.] It’s easy to think that you’re some kind of low brow cook if you are using dried herbs, instead.

But that’s simply not the case.

Substitution Ratio of Fresh Herbs vs Dry

OK. Before I get to the details of the story, here—maybe you just want to get back to your recipe in a hurry.

Here’s the rule of thumb for substituting dry-for-fresh and fresh-for-dry herbs:

1 dry = 3 fresh (it’s a general rule, so use your judgment)

Now you can go back to the kitchen and get that recipe singing. For those of you who have the time to read more detail, let’s continue.

Fresh Herbs vs Dried

You might want to consider some other criteria for selecting whether to use fresh herbs or dried in your cooking.

Is Fresh Always Better?

Fresh herbs have a different characteristic to the dried forms of the same herb. The particular characteristic will suit some recipes better than the alternative form of herb.

So fresh isn’t always better than dried herbs as long as they are not older than about 6 months beyond which time their flavors and aromas will have faded too much.

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Fresh herbs will lose their important organic flavors and fragrances when cooked for 15 minutes or more. So if you are adding herbs into a recipe that requires long cooking, use dried forms.

Not only will this save you from wasting fresh herbs–which you can later store and dry– you can use smaller quantities of the dried ingredients to achieve similar taste.

The trouble with dried herbs is that it’s easy to keep them handy —I’ve got some that are years old L. You think that because they are dry, they will keep so much longer than fresh herbs.

That’s true. When I found my ancient packet, it hadn’t gone moldy or rotten like fresh herbs would have by then. But they were stale.

Dried herbs lack the freshness and pure qualities you get with fresh herbs. They have much less water (you probably didn’t know that already bythe word “dry”) and as a consequence, their essential oils are much more concentrated than fresh herb.

It’s that high concentration of essential oils that generate the stronger flavor from small amounts.

Dry herbs will need to be checked—crush a little in your hand—to make sure they still have a strong aroma before you use them. Are they still green or have they faded?

It’s worth noting that if you are following a recipe that specifiesfresh herbs (or dry), you would expect it to taste better than it does if you substitute dry (or fresh).

Use Fresh Herbs Late in Your Cooking and to Garnish

To get the most impact out of fresh herbs, it’s best to use them at the end of the cooking process.

That way the flavors stay fresh and then they accent the dish in the most effective way.

Just before you start serving your dish, add the basil or the appropriate herb that fits the recipe.

Fresh is perfect for salad dressings and sauces or any quick dish because they can infuse their flavors much faster than dried herbs where the herb’s specific qualities have been locked in during the drying process.

There’s a little trick you can try that will release the plant’s special essential oils so they infuse better with the dish. It also releases their much loved aromas into the air so that nose matches tongue when eaten.

What is it? Give them a smack. That’s right, put a sprig in one hand and then clap it with the other, sharply. Don’t be too brutal or you willbring out the grassy, bitter taste of the chlorophyll.

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By adding herb garnishes, you give the eater the option to vary the flavor of the dish simply by just including some garnish when they take a mouthful.

Grow Your Own Herbs

 In some areas, it can get pretty expensive to be constantly buying fresh herbs.

But why buy fresh when herbs are very easy to grow in small spaces—including in small pots. You can easily start your own kitchen garden even from cuttings taken from a friend’s garden.

Herbs have medicinal uses as well as culinary applications so it can be a really fun exercise to tend to your little charges. Kids love growing them too.

You might even be able to grow a selection insideyour house although they don’t all do as well as each other. Check your favorites to see which will work for you.

Having them in small pots will allow you to move them inside in winter. Keep them where they will be warm and bathe in as much sunlight as possible. Avoid heating vents and drafts.

Your mint, sage and thyme will all survive winter and boom when spring shows up. Others may not make it. And even though the ones that do survive will not be as good as they were in the full power of summer— you will still be way ahead compared to paying winter prices.

Cut them back in spring—especially the thyme, otherwise it will become quite woody in texture. Oregano and mint are like weeds so it’s always a good move to have them in pots so they can’t invade yourwhole garden plot.

When you grow them fresh, it is a joy to be able to grab whatever you need without worrying about cost and wastage. And you never have to worry about how they were grown and handled before you get to eat them.

Best Uses of Dried Herbs

The main thing to consider is the length of cooking time.

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If you add dried herbs towards the end of the cooking process, they will just produce a dusty flavor that you don’t want at all. They need extended cooking time so that the strong flavors get the best chance of being released from their dry interior.

But no amount of cooking can rescue poor quality or old, worn out dried herbs. If you don’t get that sensational waft of herb aroma when you open your airtight jar, it’s time for the bin.

Dried herbs sauté well so you can add them into soups before you pour in the liquid. Braising and sautéing helps the locked in flavors burst out and into your dish to enjoy.

Preserving and Storing Fresh Herbs

There’s a nice list of herbs and when they are available (in NZ) so don’t freak out if it doesn’t match your location. Very nice presentation:Fresh herbs, garnishes and edible flowers

In the end, I’d suggest you trust your gut along with the tips that I’ve shared with you. Cooking comes naturally to us, especially if we already have a good recipe to work with. So, using fresh or dried herbs will become immensely easy for you now that you know how to choose between the two.

I'm Emma Madison and I hope you enjoyed these tips and that they will help you in starting with the clean eating meal plan.

For more details, help and clean eating recipes, come and visit my blog athttp://EatingCleanToday.com- we discuss clean eating grocery list ideas, healthy shopping plans, snacks and meal recipes.

And you can ask questions and get other help over atFacebook.com/EatingCleanToday.

And please take a look at my bookEating Clean to Stay Young: enjoy youthful energy, ideal weight and disease-free health over at the Kindle Store.

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