Cook With Thyme

Thyme is an ancient cooking herb that is used in recipes from many countries. It can be purchased as a dried spice or as a fresh herb. Thyme is a low growing herb with tiny leaves. It is generally combined with the herbs rosemary, marjoram and sage in cooking. Thyme is used as a seasoning for meat, particularly poultry and pork, but it is also used to flavor some tomato-based sauces and sometimes even used to flavor cheese as it ages.

Steps

Selecting and Storing Fresh Thyme

Snipping stems directly from a thyme plant will give you the most flavorful herb. If you don’t have access to fresh thyme, look for it in the herb section of your grocery store.

  1. Select young tender shoots on the end of stems and snip them off plants with a small pair of scissors. You can harvest thyme at any time, but preferably just before use.
  2. Look for fresh thyme in a grocery store. It should look vibrantly green and firm, not yellowed and limp.
  3. Put the ends of fresh thyme cuttings in a glass of water as you would flowers in a vase until you are ready to use it.
    • Place the glass in the refrigerator.
    • Change the water every other day.
    • Thyme will store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
  4. Wash the stems under cold running water and pick off any yellowed leaves just before you are ready to use fresh thyme.
  5. Read your recipe to determine how to prepare the fresh thyme.
    • If it calls for thyme sprigs, your washed thyme is ready to use.
    • If the recipe calls for thyme leaves, pull the sprigs through the tines of a fork to remove the leaves.
    • If the recipe calls for chopped fresh thyme, place the leafy stems on a clean chopping board and dice them into bits with a sharp knife. Remove any large, woody pieces of stem and discard.

Recipe Ideas for Fresh Thyme

During the spring and summer, fresh thyme is abundant and perfect for adding flavor to your favorite foods. The longer fresh thyme cooks, the milder the flavor will get.

  1. Make a butter rub with thyme.
    • Add 1/4 cup of fresh diced thyme to 1/2 cup of olive oil or softened butter and rub it on chicken or pork before grilling or roasting.
  2. Make a thyme scramble.
    • Mix 1/2 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves with 3 to 4 large eggs for scrambled eggs or an omelet.
  3. Make a dry rub with thyme.
    • Combine 1 teaspoon of fresh chopped thyme with a 1/2 cup of coarse sea salt and let the mixture sit for 15 minutes.
    • Rub the salt mixture on any meat just before grilling or roasting.
  4. Make herbed bread with thyme.
    • Blend together 1/2 teaspoon of chopped thyme and 1/2 teaspoon of chopped rosemary.
    • Brush the top of bread dough with melted butter, then sprinkle on the herb mix and bake.
  5. Stuff chicken with fresh thyme.
    • Place 3 to 4 whole sprigs of thyme and rosemary inside whole chickens that will be roasted or broiled.
    • Remove sprigs and discard them after chicken is cooked.
  6. Make a thyme-infused spread for crackers.
    • Mix together 1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves, 1 teaspoon of finely minced chives, 1/8 of a teaspoon of white pepper and 1/8 of a teaspoon salt.
    • Blend the seasonings into 3 oz. of softened cream cheese with a food processor.
    • Serve the spread with toast triangles or crackers.

Using and Storing Dried Thyme

Dried thyme can be found in most spice racks at a grocery store.

  1. Carefully measure out the amount of dried thyme called for in a recipe.
  2. Add it to your dish according to the directions in the recipe.
  3. Check the expiration dates on dried spices and purchase only small amounts. Use opened spices within one year.

Recipe Ideas for Dried Thyme

Dried thyme is a potent herb and unlike fresh thyme, may get stronger tasting the longer it cooks.

  1. Infuse your spaghetti sauce with thyme
    • Add 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme to 1 to 2 quarts (.95 L) of homemade spaghetti sauce, in the last 30 minutes of cooking.
  2. Make a bouquet garni with thyme.
    • Combine 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme and 1/2 teaspoon each of marjoram, rosemary, sage and a bay leaf in a small square of cheesecloth.
    • Tie it with a bit of string to make an herb packet.
    • Float this packet in homemade chicken soup as it cooks for an added infusion of flavor.
  3. Season salmon with thyme.
    • Mix 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme to 1/2 teaspoon of lemon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest and 1/2 cup of soft butter or margarine.
    • Spread it on salmon steaks before grilling or broiling.
  4. Season your stuffing with thyme.
    • Combine 1/2 teaspoon each of dried thyme, rosemary, marjoram and sage, an 1/8 of a teaspoon of salt and an 1/8 of a teaspoon of black pepper with 2 tablespoons of melted butter or margarine with 1 cup of chicken broth.
    • Chop 2 celery stalks and 1 small yellow cooking onion into small pieces.
    • Combine the celery and onions with 6 cups of croutons or dried bread broken into pieces.
    • Pour the butter, broth and spice mix over the bread and vegetables.
    • Toss the mixture with a spoon until all the pieces of bread are coated.
    • Use the coated bread to stuff a turkey or chicken before roasting.
  5. Make a fragrant bean soup with thyme.
    • Add a 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme to every pound, (.45 kilograms) of beans in your favorite bean soup recipe.
    • Thyme is a nice flavoring for beans and helps reduce the gas associated with eating beans.
  6. Drink thyme-infused tea for its natural benefits.
    • Add 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme and a teaspoon of honey to 1 cup of your favorite tea and drink it hot when you have a sore throat.
    • Thyme has antiseptic properties.



Tips

  • Many ornamental varieties of thyme exist and some of them are not as good for cooking as true culinary thyme. When you want to grow thyme to use in cooking, choose either a lemon thyme (thymus x citriodorus) or common thyme (thymus vulgaris).
  • A tablespoon of chopped fresh herb is generally equivalent to a 1/2 teaspoon of dried, ground herb.
  • Thyme can be grown in a pot in a sunny windowsill for fresh herb all year.

Warnings

  • Use spices in small amounts until you are sure you like the flavor. To start, use 1/4 teaspoon of dried or 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme to 1 pound of meat or every 2 cups of sauce or soup.

Things You'll Need

  • Scissors
  • Sharp knife
  • Cutting board
  • Cheesecloth
  • String

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

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