Oregano

oregano

General Information

An herb that is commonly used throughout Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, oregano has a clean but complex piney flavor. Try adding it to meats, roasted vegetables, tomato dishes, eggs, or stews.  Oregano was one of the few food flavorings available during the middle ages as many spices were not common. They would chew the oregano leaves as a cure for rheumatism, toothache, indigestion, and as a cough suppressant. Oregano found its way to China probably via the spice road that wended through the Middle-East during the Medieval period. Here again it was a medicinal herb. Doctors prescribed it to relieve fever, vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, and itchy skin.

Storing & Cooking Information

Handling: To use fresh oregano, hold the rinsed and dried stems in one hand and strip off the leaves by running your fingers of the other hand down the stems. Use whole leaves or chop them with a sharp, dry knife.

Storing: Store fresh oregano in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Freezing: Freeze oregano to retain the most flavor and aroma. Freeze entire branches on cookie sheets, then strip the leaves from the stems and put them back into the freezer in plastic containers. Or mix finely chopped oregano leaves with just enough olive oil or butter to bind them together, and freeze the mixture in ice cube trays.

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