Nutrition
| Per 100 g | Per 1 oz (28 g) | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 312 kcal | 88 kcal |
| Protein | 10.9 g | 3.1 g |
| Fat | 5.3 g | 1.5 g |
| saturated | 1.6 g | 0.4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 42.1 g | 11.9 g |
| sugars | 0 g | 0 g |
| Fibre | 25 g | 7.1 g |
| Sodium | 62 mg | 18 mg |
Estimated from the ingredients, for the finished dried product. Actual values vary with the produce you use and how far you dry it.
Ingredients
- 650 g fresh oregano sprigs
Instructions
- This is the herb most people only ever meet dried, and one of the very few that is genuinely better for it. Drying concentrates the oil and takes off the raw, almost soapy edge the fresh leaf carries, so nothing is being sacrificed here.
- Cut the sprigs in the morning once the dew has gone. Sun on the plant costs it oil, and on a herb this aromatic that is the whole harvest.
- Rinse briefly, shake well, and let the sprigs sit on a cloth until nothing glistens on them. Any water left on the leaves is time the machine spends before it starts on the oregano.
- Leave the leaves attached. They are small, they will not come off cleanly while wet, and the stems dry near enough in step with them.
- Build a loose, airy layer of sprigs on a fine mesh insert. Packed flat there is no route for the airflow, and on an open tray the fan lifts them into the element.
- Dry at 40 °C for 6 hours. Halfway through, move the tray: the small leaves should rattle on their stems and give way at a touch.
- Cool the sprigs on the bench for a few minutes before handling. Hot herb always feels more finished than it is, and warm leaf in a jar sweats.
- Strip and crumble, or store the sprigs whole and crush them as you cook. Roughly a third of the fresh weight comes back.
- Marjoram belongs to the same family, dries on the same settings and comes out a little sweeter — there is a page for it here.
- Glass jar, tight lid, dark cupboard. Look at it again after seven days, and if the inside of the glass has clouded, the batch needs longer.
