Can You Use Thyme Stems

Zaatar also includes other spices such as sumac and sesame seeds. When you are cooking the dish some of the leaves may come off bu the stem stays intact and you can simply remove the stems when you are done.

How To Cook With Fresh And Dried Thyme

Depending on how your recipe demands you can make good use of the whole thyme or just the fresh leaves.

Can you use thyme stems. Discard the stems before eating. Of course for leaves-only recipes you will have to remove the thyme leaves from the stem. Thyme is used to season all kinds of dishes either by itself or as part of a blend or bouquet garni alongside other common herbs like rosemary sage and marjoram.

Watch for any damaged leaves stems and disturbed soil around your herbs. When you have an herb such as thyme it works great to put whole sprigs in your recipe. The leaves will fall off in cooking and then the stem can be removed prior to serving.

To dry thyme gather several stems into a bunch and hang the bunch upside down in a warm dry. The stems can be dried and used. Pinch the stem near the top with the fingers of one hand then run the fingers of your other hand down the length of the stem from top to bottom.

Toss the stems and this also goes for hearty stems like rosemary thyme sage and basil into your vegetable stock mix or stuff inside chicken during roasting. A thyme-infused orange marmalade would turn out so fresh and so fragrant. It will last for about two weeks.

There are a few ways to approach this depending on your preference. Alternatively you can pluck the leaves and add them to your dish. Do add thyme early in the cooking process.

Use it for roasting. This trick works with other herbs too. The thyme plant is a perennial with woody stems that produce robust and flavorful leaflets.

Fresh thyme can be used with or without its stem. You can also finely chop thyme leaves and stems included to use in recipes but if the stems are woody youll want to use only the leaves. This isnt really the case with tougher woodier herbs like rosemary and oregano.

For some uses like a bouquet garni you can use the entire thyme stem. If you find that your leaves and stems are starting to fade turn brown or curl you will have detected the problem early enough to possibly save the plant. Thyme is an herb whose small leaves grow on clusters of thin stems.

Thyme rosemary oregano tarragon and marjoram are all herbs with fairly small leaves and tough woody stems which actually makes stripping off the leaves much easier. You can also make your own version of the Middle Eastern herb and spice mix known as zaatar which features thyme heavily. Thyme is often used in dishes such as a seasoning for sauces or soups.

Fresh thyme can be stored unwashed in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. If you are cooking at a low temp for a long time then you can leave the thyme whole the leaves will fall off and all you have to do is pick out the stems. The thyme leaves infused into the dish just as theyve always done and gradually worked their own way off the stems as we stirred.

You can use it to make a thyme butter that is perfect for basting meats and vegetables on the grill. At first youll only want to trim them lightly or use a few stems for cooking. If a recipe calls for a sprig of thyme the leaves and stem should be used together intact.

Put fresh sprigs in with the fruit to cook. Stuff sprigs of fresh thyme into turkey or roll it into pork roasts then round the dish off with a matching thyme flavored jus. Youve likely used this herb while cooking before or at least ate a dish that included thyme.

However if a recipe calls for a sprig the stem should be left on. Take the extra step and look for the healthiest herbs you can buy. The stems of soft herbsthink parsley dill cilantro and basiltaste just like the leaves.

The stems themselves were easy to find and pull out once the leaves were off. If youre cooking a saute or a quick. But if this helps you can skip this part when using thyme for non-liquid food.

For a larger harvest the best time to cut thyme is right before the plants start to flower. But assuming you just want the leaves youll want to follow the below steps which are also shown in the video. Try using thyme when making your own jam jelly or marmalade.

You can start harvesting from your thyme plants once they reach a height of about 6-8.

How To Strip Herbs Off Their Stems Kitchn