Fresh vs. dried herbs

cefmac

cefmac

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I love the idea of using fresh herbs in my cooking, especially when I see photos of nice dishes garnished with green leafy herbs, but sadly, I think it's impractical for me. I'm a student, and fresh herbs are quite expensive, considering they don't keep for very long. Having said that, I'd probably buy them if I was cooking a meal for a special occasion, like if I was having friends over. But for everyday cooking, I use dried herbs.

Which do you prefer to use?
 
In the UK it is now possible to purchase fresh herbs that are frozen which is what I often use for certain herbs such as fresh coriander, fresh parsley, fresh mint when out of season. Now is not a good time to raid what little is left in the herb patch. But mostly I prefer fresh herbs to dried herbs. And compared to fresh, unfrozen herbs, the fresh frozen herbs are often cheaper.

I will also cut and chop any excess herbs of my own (from my herb patch) and store them in ice until needed. Ice cube trays being quite useful in this instance.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
In the UK it is now possible to purchase fresh herbs that are frozen which is what I often use for certain herbs such as fresh coriander, fresh parsley, fresh mint when out of season. Now is not a good time to raid what little is left in the herb patch. But mostly I prefer fresh herbs to dried herbs. And compared to fresh, unfrozen herbs, the fresh frozen herbs are often cheaper.

I will also cut and chop any excess herbs of my own (from my herb patch) and store them in ice until needed. Ice cube trays being quite useful in this instance.
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Ooh, that's a good idea! I've never thought about frozen fresh herbs. Can you get them in all the normal supermarkets (Tesco etc.)? Growing my own herbs is something I've wanted to do for a couple of years, but I've never gotten around to it. Besides, I'm worried I'd kill them!
 
cefmac said:
Ooh, that's a good idea! I've never thought about frozen fresh herbs. Can you get them in all the normal supermarkets (Tesco etc.)? Growing my own herbs is something I've wanted to do for a couple of years, but I've never gotten around to it. Besides, I'm worried I'd kill them!
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I don't know about Tesco's. Its not a supermarket I often use (unless I need some 'ethnic foods' for which it is usually excellent), but I have certainly seen them in both Sainsbury's and Waitrose (the one I use the most because the veg in there is excellent quality and Waitrose price match now with Tesco's and the specialist food items I often use (dairy free, etc) are usually cheaper in Waitrose than any other supermarket!). But killing herbs is actually quite difficult to do, just don't purchase them from supermarkets (in the potted soil) and expect them to survive in a garden - they are bred specially to not live, otherwise there would be no market for them. You need to buy them from a garden centre or grow the seeds yourself. I just raid the garden centre and get the special offers (buy 5 pots for £10 so of offers). Find a patch of soil with plenty of sunlight and not waterlogged and you should find they will live without too much effort in the UK. The first few weeks may need you watering them whilst they establish themselves, but I don't worry about cutting off more than they can grow - its what they are there for.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
I don't know about Tesco's. Its not a supermarket I often use (unless I need some 'ethnic foods' for which it is usually excellent), but I have certainly seen them in both Sainsbury's and Waitrose (the one I use the most because the veg in there is excellent quality and Waitrose price match now with Tesco's and the specialist food items I often use (dairy free, etc) are usually cheaper in Waitrose than any other supermarket!). But killing herbs is actually quite difficult to do, just don't purchase them from supermarkets (in the potted soil) and expect them to survive in a garden - they are bred specially to not live, otherwise there would be no market for them. You need to buy them from a garden centre or grow the seeds yourself. I just raid the garden centre and get the special offers (buy 5 pots for £10 so of offers). Find a patch of soil with plenty of sunlight and not waterlogged and you should find they will live without too much effort in the UK. The first few weeks may need you watering them whilst they establish themselves, but I don't worry about cutting off more than they can grow - its what they are there for.
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Thanks for the tips! I might have a look in Sainburys then, seeing as there's one across the road from me. Do you think they'd survive okay being grown on a windowsill? I have a garden, but it's communal and somewhat overgrown! Plus I live on the top floor of a four-storey building so trekking up and down to the garden wouldn't be convenient...
 
cefmac said:
Thanks for the tips! I might have a look in Sainburys then, seeing as there's one across the road from me. Do you think they'd survive okay being grown on a windowsill? I have a garden, but it's communal and somewhat overgrown! Plus I live on the top floor of a four-storey building so trekking up and down to the garden wouldn't be convenient...
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be careful with windows sills. You can grow herbs on them but don't expect them to live as long. They will also get quite leggy unless the window is south facing in which case they may get burns on their leaves if we ever have a really hot summer again. Also they are quite prone to both whitefly and greenfly on window sills, in which case you will have to simply throw the lot away. Thyme will work well, parsley to a small extent as will coriander - normally both need plenty of soil and food... but you will get some. Mint is a really good one to do on windowsills - it is hard to kill, loves water so difficult to overwater - you can physically stand the plant in water with it being a marshland plant. Sage is OK but gets exceptionally leggy and you don't generally use much in recipes. rosemary is actually a bush, so probably won't work in a pot plant for more than a season.... have you considered what herbs you want?
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
be careful with windows sills. You can grow herbs on them but don't expect them to live as long. They will also get quite leggy unless the window is south facing in which case they may get burns on their leaves if we ever have a really hot summer again. Also they are quite prone to both whitefly and greenfly on window sills, in which case you will have to simply throw the lot away. Thyme will work well, parsley to a small extent as will coriander - normally both need plenty of soil and food... but you will get some. Mint is a really good one to do on windowsills - it is hard to kill, loves water so difficult to overwater - you can physically stand the plant in water with it being a marshland plant. Sage is OK but gets exceptionally leggy and you don't generally use much in recipes. rosemary is actually a bush, so probably won't work in a pot plant for more than a season.... have you considered what herbs you want?
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Hmmm, I didn't realise there could be so many things that could go wrong...Ideally, I would have basil, rosemary, mint and parsley. I know you've mentioned most of those ones, but not basil - do you know how well it would grow?
 
cefmac said:
Hmmm, I didn't realise there could be so many things that could go wrong...Ideally, I would have basil, rosemary, mint and parsley. I know you've mentioned most of those ones, but not basil - do you know how well it would grow?
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I have always found basil the hardest of the lot for some reason. It is really easy to overwater it, underwater it and the leaves get scorched really easily. It wilts & dies and is usually the first to get greenfly or whitefly. But that is only my experience (though I used to grow all of my own herbs, veg & fruit). I simply purchase basil as I need it and make sure the recipe using it is the first for that week (we shop on a weekly basis). You can also get it frozen as well, in the fresh format
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
I have always found basil the hardest of the lot for some reason. It is really easy to overwater it, underwater it and the leaves get scorched really easily. It wilts & dies and is usually the first to get greenfly or whitefly. But that is only my experience (though I used to grow all of my own herbs, veg & fruit). I simply purchase basil as I need it and make sure the recipe using it is the first for that week (we shop on a weekly basis). You can also get it frozen as well, in the fresh format
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Okay, maybe that's one to buy rather than grow then. Thanks for all your advice!
 
Interesting thread. :) I've seen frozen herbs, especially Brazil in the frozen foods section of my supermarket but never thought to try it. It's actually reasonably priced, so I may have to give it a go as like @cefmac if I'm cooking for myself I mostly turn to dried herbs.
 
I always used dried herbs in my cooking but I do saw some frozen herbs in some of our supermarket here. Thanks for the very interesting information above and will try using this in my cooking. :)
 
Check your local farmers markets when possible, they typically sell fresh herbs very cheap. Our local grocery stores for example want like $4-$5 for a small little pack of a given fresh herb (like a few sprigs), which is nuts. But if I go to a farmers market and look for them, I can often get a large bag of whatever for like $2, such as fresh basil. If you can get a good deal on a large quantity of some fresh herbs, just freeze what you can't use. Frozen herbs work just fine in sauces, roasts, and other applications - they just don't work for garnishing, that's all really. Also, with some herbs, there are other uses for them as well. Basil for example, steeped in hot water to make a tea, actually works as a decongestant if you are feeling stuffed up or got a runny nose.
 
OhioTom76 said:
Check your local farmers markets when possible, they typically sell fresh herbs very cheap. Our local grocery stores for example want like $4-$5 for a small little pack of a given fresh herb (like a few sprigs), which is nuts. But if I go to a farmers market and look for them, I can often get a large bag of whatever for like $2, such as fresh basil. If you can get a good deal on a large quantity of some fresh herbs, just freeze what you can't use. Frozen herbs work just fine in sauces, roasts, and other applications - they just don't work for garnishing, that's all really. Also, with some herbs, there are other uses for them as well. Basil for example, steeped in hot water to make a tea, actually works as a decongestant if you are feeling stuffed up or got a runny nose.
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Yes! I was just thinking about Farmer's Markets! I love going to our Farmer's Market in the summer and getting cheap fresh herbs. I also go to the local nursery and buy a few of my favorite herb plants to store in my back yard for the summer. I don't worry about killing plants that I bought at the nursery, because they are pretty hearty. You could certainly bring them inside and keep them year round. I'll have to try freezing what's left at the end of the summer.
 
I use dried herbs a lot more because it's just more practical and we don't have a lot of fresh herb selection in our area anyway. I do still want to get more into fresh herbs, though, which is why I'm strongly considering putting up an indoor garden where I can just pick as I please. Hopefully, I get to start with this soon.
 
For the taste? Fresh.
For being practical? Dried.

I don't have my own garden (yet) so I prefer buying and using dried ones. They are obviously very easy to store too and last for ages... which is important for me since I only cook for one and don't use that many spices.
 
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