Dried thyme has a stronger taste than fresh.
Dry thymes are usually suitable for cooking sauces, stews, soups, or meat rubs.
At the same time, fresh thymes are usually used for salads.
Fresh herbs, including thymes, usually contain about 80% water.
But if you’re cooking and only have some dried thyme to hand, you may be wondering how much dried thyme equals a sprig?
A sprig of thyme is the 4 to 5 inches main stem from a thyme plant that incorporates the leaves and one to two secondary sprigs that grow from the main stem.
The stem and leaves are kept intact and wholly added when adding a fresh sprig.
1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme is equivalent to a large sprig of fresh thyme.
In cooking, thymes can be used whole as sprigs with the stalks or by picking the leaves alone.
The leaves can be chopped or left whole to add to dishes.
The stems of thymes are woody and fibrous, so they usually won’t melt or break when cooked.
But for baking, it is better to remove the stems and use only the leaves.
The best option is to use dried thymes that have been stemmed.
Besides being used for savory dishes such as braising, roasting, and baking, fresh or dried thyme can also be used to flavor cocktails, stocks, and even teas.
Dried or fresh thymes taste like dried or fresh marjoram, sage, rosemary, and oregano, and you can use the four herbs as a substitute.
Dried basil can also be used as a substitute but not with fresh basil.
However, fresh or dried oregano is the best substitute for thyme.
They have very similar tastes, and both come from the mint family.
Thymes are a food rich in antioxidants because of the high content of flavonoids.
When dried, thymes retain many of their antioxidant properties and volatile oils.
The volatile oil has antispasmodic, carminative, gas relieving, and antibacterial properties.
How Do I Substitute Dried Thyme for Fresh Thyme?
Dried and fresh thyme are interchangeable, but they have different flavors, and dried thymes have a deeper and stronger flavor than fresh thyme.
Unless the dried thymes you have stored are far past their expiration date, you need fewer dried thymes in the recipe to replace fresh thymes.
Use one teaspoon of dried thyme for every tablespoon of fresh thyme specified in the recipe.
In conclusion, add three times more fresh thymes if the recipe calls for dried. On the other hand, if the recipe calls for fresh thymes, add 1/3 dried.
Dried herbs, including thymes, are dehydrated, containing less oil, and the oil contained tends to be trapped deeper in the leaves.
The method of adding dried and fresh thymes in cooking is also different.
For dried thymes, add them earlier in the cooking process, and they need more exposure to heat and moisture to release their flavor.
Instead, you can also try rubbing dried thymes on your hands so they can release more of the oil trapped inside.
On the other hand, if you are using fresh thyme, add them before the end of the cooking process to ensure the heat doesn’t spoil the taste and aroma of the fresh thyme.
To maintain the quality of both dried and fresh thyme:
- Store them in the right way.
- Wrap fresh thymes in a slightly damp paper towel and store them in the refrigerator for up to seven days.
- You can also store it in a glass jar filled with 1 inch of water.
- Cut the ends of the thyme stems before putting them in the jar, and close tightly in a plastic bag.
- Dried thymes have a shelf life of up to 6 months from when the packaging is opened.
- Store tightly in a glass container or jar in a dark, cool, and dry place.
What Is The Equivalent of 1 Sprig Of Thyme?
A sprig of thyme refers to a sprig of fresh thyme that has not gone through the drying process.
Usually, a sprig of fresh thyme is about four to five inches long, and the length of the core stalk has small branches beside it.
The number of leaves from a sprig of thyme is uncertain and can vary from one stalk to another.
The way to measure the amount is usually by referring to the spoon size.
A sprig of thyme yields about ⅓ to ¾ of a teaspoon: this is the number of freshly picked thyme leaves from the stem.
You can also cook the leaves and stems together; they are edible, and cooking with the stems saves time.
The number of leaves on the sprig of thymes varies, and choose one with many leaves.
Since thyme has a delicate taste, you may need a lot of it for the aroma and flavor to be infused into the dish.
Even if you pour too much of it into a dish, it won’t overpower the taste.
Thyme is a nutritious plant for culinary purposes that also has properties to reduce the risk of food poisoning.
Its nutritional content can help fight disease.
Infusion of thymes has traces in medicine dating back thousands of years.
It is also used in traditional medicine to treat digestive problems and as an expectorant for upper respiratory tract infections.
There are two types of dried thymes, namely rubbed and dried.
Dried thymes consist only of dried thyme leaves pulled from the stems.
While rubbed or ground, thymes are thyme leaves that have been ground into a fine powder.
The amount of ground thymes used is half the amount requested for dried thyme in the recipe.
What Is a Sprig of Thyme?
A sprig is a small stem that contains the leaves of a plant.
A sprig of thyme does not refer to an exact size or amount, such as measurement in grams or liters, and measurements are more of an estimate.
A sprig of thyme is usually 3 to 5 inches long and has minor branches on the sides.
Despite being edible, the stem of the thyme plant is too woody to eat.
If the recipe calls for a sprig of thyme, then you don’t need to pluck the leaves from the stem.
If the recipe calls for fresh thymes, it means using only the leaves.
They must be plucked from the stem before adding to the dish.
And the stem does not need to be used in cooking.
You do not need to remove the leaves before serving the food.
Stems of thyme can give thyme a stronger and deeper flavor to dishes.
Usually, stew or soup recipes call for a sprig of thyme to be added at the beginning of the cooking process, and then you discard them before the dish is served.
You can also wrap a sprig of thyme in cheesecloth and tie it tightly with food-safe thread.
The finished product is known as bouquet garni or herbs sachets.
Use these herb sachets in dishes such as sauces, braises, broth, soup, and others.
You can change the herbs in the sachet to match what is called for in the recipe.
Bouquet garni makes it easy for you to dispose of the herbs in the package after the cooking process is complete.
The sachet usually consists of thyme, parsley, and bay leaf, but you can also fill it with various herbs you like.
I’m Chris Watson & the Founder of EatForLonger.com. I’m a food and wellbeing enthusiast researching and sharing foodstuffs and simple food-based concepts, such as fasting and clean eating.
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