Herbs and spices

Appears in

By Alastair Little and Richard Whittington

Published 1993

  • About

We tend to use fresh herbs: in the case of oregano, however, dried is actually preferable and the recently introduced freeze-dried version is best of all. Other herbs to keep dried (but used circumspectly) are bay, sage and thyme. Otherwise I have yet to be convinced that even freeze-drying produces any other edible herbs.

Most aromatics (i.e. spices and other flavourings) are also used dried: cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla pods, for example. Saffron, the stamens of a species of crocus, is the most precious aromatic of all, and indispensable in risotti. Turmeric is not a substitute. Saffron is so expensive you are unlikely ever to store enough for it to get a chance to deteriorate.