15 Essential Culinary Herbs Every Cook Should Know

These 15 Essential Culinary Herbs are the most frequently used in classic and modern cooking. Discover the magic of adding herbs to make food taste more exciting and delicious.

Herbs are an elemental ingredient in cooking. They can delicately enhance the flavor of any sauce, work in symphony with other flavors, or completely dominate a dish as a single flavor.

Color drawings of 15 culinary herbs with text overlay.

Get special tips for using fresh and dried herbs. Plus the iconic dishes that are known for the use of a specific herb.

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About Culinary Herbs

Culinary herbs are the leaves and stems of edible plants that have savory or aromatic properties that enhance the flavor of food. These aromatic properties come from the oils in a plant.

There are two types of herbs, perennial and annual. Herb plants that are perennial shrubs or trees, like rosemary and the bay laurel tree, are planted once and can live year after year when they are well-tended.

Annual herbs only live for a year at maximum and must be replanted every year and sometimes every season to have a steady supply. Both basil and chives are examples of annual herbs.

What is the Difference between Herbs and Spices?

Although both herbs and spices come from plants, they each come from different parts of a plant. Spices come from seeds, stamens, fruits, and roots, while herbs are only the leaves and stems of an edible plant. So, the seed form of an herb is a spice.

Occasionally a plant can be both an herb and a spice, such as the dill plant whose leaves, dill weed, are an herb, and its seed, dill seed, is a spice. And sometimes the name changes like with cilantro where the leaves are cilantro but the seeds are known as coriander.

Cooking with Herbs

You probably already know the power of culinary herbs in cooking if you have Italian herb seasoning or bay leaves in your pantry.

Herbs bring national and personal character to a dish. Cooked tomatoes without basil and oregano are just tomato sauce and not Marinara sauce, while American turkey dressing just isn't the same without Bell's poultry seasoning and it's blend of rosemary, oregano, sage, marjoram, and thyme.

There are many imaginative ways in which herbs can be used to enhance dishes. They can be cooked into a dish from the very beginning like a bay leaf in braised and stewed dishes, added toward the end of cooking like chervil in bearnaise sauce, and even added to cold dishes like herb butters, dips, salads, and salad dressings where their flavor can be bright and vibrant.

Today we see herbs being used more than ever as home cooks and chefs branch out and hone their special signature style of food. But herbs haven't always been in the spotlight in the way they are today.

During the 1960's the most common herb seen on a plate was a sprig of parsley. In the 1990's that sprig was chopped and sprinkled liberally around the rim of a plate. But herbs are so much more than a parsley garnish.

Consider herbs the supporting player in your food and you will always dish up something interesting and memorable.

My first experience with herbs making an impression was with one of the most iconic salad dressings of all time, Green Goddess, which is loaded with fresh parsley and chives.

And today I love using herbs in fruit salads like my watermelon salads where I use basil in the dressing and also mint in the salad.

15 Culinary Herbs Every Cook Should Know

Sweet Basil

Characteristics: Aromatic, Sweet, Peppery, Clove-like.

Best With: Eggplant, Tomatoes, Zucchini
Beef, Chicken, Eggs, Fish

Best In: Curries, Pestos, Sauces, Soups

Notable Dish: Italian Pesto Sauce

Bay Leaves

Characteristics: Pungent and Distinct

Best With: Dried Beans, Dried Peas,
Beef, Pork

Best In: Soups, Stews, Braised Foods

Notable Dish: Yankee Pot Roast

Chervil

Characteristics: Delicate Anise and Grassy

Best With: Eggs, Fish, Fresh Greens, Poultry

Best In: Omelets, Salads, Sauces, Soups

Notable Dish: Bearnaise Sauce

Chives

Characteristics: Mild Onion

Best With: Onions, Leeks, Potatoes, Rice
Chicken, Cottage Cheese, Eggs, Fish

Best In: Dips, Garnishes, Soups, Sauces, Risottos

Notable Dish: French Omelette with Chives

Cilantro

Characteristics: Bright and Citrusy

Best With: Avocado, Tomatoes
Chicken, Fish

Best In: Chutneys, Curries, Dips, Salads, Salsas, Sauces, Soups

Notable Dish: Fresh Salsa

Dill Weed

Characteristics: Fragrant

Best With: Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Cucumbers, Potatoes
Eggs, Fish, Sour Cream, Yogurt

Best In: Omelets, Potato Salad, Salad Dressings, Sauces, Soups

Notable Dish: Borsch (Soup)

Fennel

Characteristics: Fragrant, Licorice Notes

Best With: Eggs, Fish

Best In: Pastas, Salads, Sausage, Stews.
It can be Grilled or Braised

Notable Dish: Fennel & Mandarin Orange Salad

Lemongrass

Characteristics: Zesty, Grassy Citrus

Best With: Tomatoes
Beef, Chicken, Fish, Pork

Best In: Curries, Marinades, Sauces, Soups, Teas

Notable Dish: Tom Yum Soup

Mint

Characteristics: Refreshing, Sweet, and Cool

Best With: Carrots, Eggplant, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Watermelon, Zucchini

Best In: Beverages, Cream Sauces, Curries, Fruit Salads, Jelly, Marinades, Salads, Soups

Notable Dish: Mojito

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Oregano

Characteristics: Warming and Aromatic

Best With: Eggplant, Mushrooms, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Zucchini
Beef, Chicken, Fish, Lamb

Best In: Pizza, Salad Dressings, Tomato Sauces

Notable Dish: Classic Marinara Sauce

Parsley

Characteristics: Grassy and Fresh

Best With: Cucumber, Mushrooms, Peas, Potatoes, Zucchini
Beef, Chicken, Fish, Lamb

Best In: Sauces, Salads, Garnishes for Most Dishes

Notable Dish: Green Goddess Salad Dressing

Rosemary

Characteristics: Fragrant Needles

Best With: Tomatoes, Potatoes
Chicken, Fish, Lamb, Pork

Best In: Foccacia, Marinades, Pizza, Tomato Sauces, Soups, Stews

Notable Dish: Rosemary Focaccia

Sage

Characteristics: Woody and Very Aromatic

Best With: Beef, Brussels Sprouts, Eggplant, Cheese, Chicken, Duck, Peas, Pork, Turkey, Winter Squash

Best In: Risottos, Roasted Vegetables, Salad Dressings, Sauces, Soups, Stuffings and Dressings

Notable Dish: Chicken Saltimbocca

Tarragon

Characteristics: Black Licorice and Peppery

Best With: Carrots, Leeks, Mushrooms, Potatoes Spinach
Beef, Chicken, Eggs, Fish, Lamb

Best In: Cold Soups, Garnishes, Omelets, Salad Dressings, Vinegars

Notable Dish: Salad Nicoise

Thyme

Characteristics: Minty and Fragrant

Best With: Carrots, Peas, Potatoes, Rice, Tomatoes, Winter Squash
Chicken, Beef, Duck, Fish, Lamb, Pork

Best In: Chowders, Dips, Rice, Soups, Stews, Stuffings, Tomato Sauces

Notable Dish: Coq au Vin

Essential Culinary Herbs Chart

This chart lists the essential, most commonly used culinary herbs, their characteristics, what foods they are best paired with, what dishes they are best in, and cuisines that use these herbs often.

Chart of most commonly used culinary herbs, their characteristics, best foods to pair them with, types of dishes used in, and cuisines that use them often.

Dried Herbs versus Fresh Herbs

Fresh herbs have a milder flavor and are always more pleasing than dried herbs. However, unless you grow herbs, fresh herbs can be challenging to acquire from your local grocery store.

Once herbs are dried their volume decreases and the aromatic oils become more concentrated.

So, while fresh herbs are grassier and generally more delicate in flavor, dried herbs become stronger and may become bitter or sharp in flavor.

Fresh Herbs to Dried Herbs Conversion

Because dried herbs are more concentrated in flavor you will use less than fresh herbs. The following chart estimates the conversions from fresh herbs to dried and vice versa for any recipe.

Fresh Herbs	Dried Herbs
2 Sprigs	⅛ Teaspoon
4 Sprigs	¼ Teaspoon
8 Sprigs	½ Teaspoon
12 Sprigs	¾ Teaspoon
16 Sprigs	1 Teaspoon
48 Sprigs	1 Tablespoon ( 3 Teaspoons)

Storing Herbs

Small quantities of fresh herbs should be wrapped in a barely damp paper towel and stored in a zip-top plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Large bunches of herbs like parsley or cilantro can be placed in a small jar, glass, or vase filled with water. Just like flower bouquets, cutting the stems will help the herbs absorb water and extend their storage.

Dried herbs should be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dark place to preserve their flavor.

Identifying Chervil, Parsley, and Cilantro

Chervil, flat-leaf parsley, and cilantro look very similar but there are ways to identify each of these herbs if they are not tagged at the market.

Chervil looks similar to celery leaves and smells like parsley. Parsley can be curly or flat, but chervil and cilantro are never curly.

Cilantro has rounded telltale leaves, and its aroma is warm and citrusy. Although indispensable in Mexican and Texmex cooking, for some people cilantro smells and tastes like soap.

Classic Culinary Herb Combinations

Bouquet Garni. The herb trio of parsley, thyme, and a bay leaf are tied together with cooking twine or placed into a cheesecake cloth bag. This combination of herbs is used often in French cooking for sauces, soups, stews, and braised dishes.

Fines Herbes. The French herb mixture Fines Herbes contains equal parts of parsley, chives, tarragon, and chervil all finely chopped.

Herbs de Provence. thyme, basil, rosemary, tarragon, savory, marjoram, oregano, and bay leaf. Avoid purchasing herbal blends that contain lavender, which is not traditionally used in cooking and is better suited for potpourri and room fresheners.

Italian Seasoning. Basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme.

Poultry Seasoning. Marjoram, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage.