Fresh or Dried Herbs. Which is best?
Many people often wonder about whether fresh or dried herbs are best and there isn’t a straightforward answer to that question. It will usually come down to how you want to use the herbs, why you are using them, what herbs you are using, where you live i.e. climate factors, storage capacity, garden space, etc etc… Basically there are many reasons why you might use one over the other! Let’s consider all of the reasons for and against…
Reasons why you would use fresh herbs
There are likely to be more vitamins and active constituents in the herbs when they are fresh.
Gardening is very healthy for your soul!
Some herbs lose their flavour and are simply better fresh.
What sort of texture do you want in your meal? If you want it soft or even a bit crunchy then fresh might be the way to go!
Reasons why you would use dried herbs
You can store them over the winter or off season - keep herbs all year round!
You can store a lot of them in a small amount of space
If you are planning on making medicinal extracts then you won't dilute the extract with any extra water from the plants.
Because dried herbs have a lot more biomass in a smaller space the flavour is often more concentrated and pungent.
Sometimes cooking with dried herbs can result in a better texture in the end product.
Generally, there are always some herbs I’ll have available to pick from my garden straight away and when they grow out of control I might cut and dry them. But of course there are always going to be things I simply can’t grow where I live or I will never grow enough of and so a good selection of dried culinary and medicinal herbs and teas are always a handy thing to have in the kitchen. Get growing!
TA Team
