Recipes featuring oregano

[Chris Hennes]

I have a massive oregano plant that is currently competing with the tarragon for the upper hand in my herb garden. I have to prune the stuff aggressively, so I wind up with massive quantities of oregano. I dry it of course, but then I just have massive quantities of dried oregano. Can anyone give me idea for using up a lot of it (fresh or dried)?

[Emily_R]

I have a similar problem every summer -- we have a huge garden, and literally have an oregano patch that is probably 3 feet wide by 4 feet long!

My solution is a Mediterranean-ish dish of slow-cooked (stewed) greenbeans. Basically -- good olive oil, lots of greenbeans, lots of sliced onions, garlic, a bunch of lemon juice, some white wine, and then a colossal amount of fresh herbs -- oregano, parsley, dill -- whatever I have on hand. I'll often use at least one if not two cups of chopped herbs. And of course salt and lots of fresh ground pepper. Let this stew at low heat. Lately I've been adding a bit of harissa for kick, and then when the beans are done (meltingly soft), I'll lay a few pieces of tilapia on top and steam them over the beans. Serious yum. I generally use frozen greenbeans from my garden, but it works with fresh too of course.

Looking forward to hearing other responses to this post, as my husband was just hacking back at last year's oregano today!

[heidih]

I have a few oreganos that have found their "happy spot" as in "yes I am here and I am going to get huge cuz this soil is great". One of them has "been chopped" because it is really not as beautifully fragrant as the others - into the green bin. Of course that was the one that thought it was a ground cover. The others are more upright in growth and I just clip off huge bunches to use as roasting beds for meats, potatoes and other root vegetables or winter squashes. I am not pulling the leaves off. This is literally the plant down to the ground. In this way I get a nice hit of oregano without it overpowering things. I also toss it into simmered items in the same fashion - poaching shrimp or chicken. So bottom line I think that leaving it whole uses it up in quantity and also gives you a balanced taste.

I also clip it and set it out in small glass vases all over the house. Nothing like walking by and running your hand over it lightly and sniffing to get inspired for dinner or just to enjoy the fragrance.

[Dakki]

Menudo. Mass quantities, seriously.

[djyee100]

That's a tough herb to get rid of. It's so assertive that a little goes a long way. I suggest giving away your extra oregano to people who will appreciate it.

You could also try Peter Reinhart's recipe for Oreganato bread. An adapted recipe, here:

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/recipes/strombolini

Somebody else was making a pizza crust with that dough. Now that's interesting.

http://tqsrecipes.blogspot.com/2010/06/oreganato-pizza-crust.html

I recently tried Sauteed Lamb Chops with Marjoram and White Wine, a recipe that's in James Peterson's new Meat cookbook. The marjoram pairs with lamb remarkably well. Oregano is similar to marjoram, so you could give it a go if you felt like experimenting. A close version of that recipe is here on Googlebooks, page 504.

http://books.google.com/books?id=EWSVpBheCnYC&pg=PT531&lpg=PT531&dq=peterson+lamb+chops+marjoram+white+wine&source=bl&ots=gSHuPjjtHF&sig=Ow-J1LVnZcNnGd4v_yANp6HmOd0&hl=en&ei=yhSZTfexMq_ZiAKC9JmdCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CBQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

[Chris Amirault]

Fresh "Italian" (as in Italian-American) sausages, such as the ones found in the Ruhlman/Polcyn book.

[Blether]

I find deep-frying a good solution to an abundance of parsley - it gives a surprisingly different flavour to go with the predictably-different texture. I wonder how it'd work for oregano - do you feel like being the one to tell us ?

[onrushpam]

I love Barbara Yianni's marinade for lamb and it uses up quite a bit of fresh or dried oregano.

Recipe here

[SobaAddict70]

Goes well with most preparations that feature tomatoes as the main ingredient.

A little goes a long way though.

[Chris Amirault]

And I find that the tipping point is quite sudden: you go from lovely to lousy rapidly.

[TeakettleSlim]

I make pesto out of it. Nice on pizza or cheesy toast. I also dry massive amounts of it that get used up in chili and pizza sauce over the course of the year.

[natasha1270]

Add some bunches of oregano or rosemary to coals when grilling. Or similar to Heidi's suggestion you can lay them on the grates and place meat on top.

[AAQuesada]

You can use a lot of oregano in Chimmichurri

[Chris Amirault]

IIRC, There's a Sicilian grilled swordfish dish that is very simple: olive oil, S&P, lemon, and a lot of fresh oregano. It's fantastic.

[Kouign Aman]

Sherbet or icecream?

[EatNopales]

Ethiopians drink it as tea to help with digestion of rich & spice heavy foods.... supposed to be good for the kidneys... I rather like it.

You could make Chorizo Verde to sell at local farmer's markets... you would probably corner that pretty quickly.

[runwestierun]

My favorite use for oregano doesn't use a ton of it but I like it: grilled haloumi cheese. Grill the cheese until brown and crispy, squeeze fresh lemon juice over it, sprinkle with fresh black pepper and fresh oregano leaves. Maybe some extra virgin olive oil and salt if the cheese isn't too salty. It's the perfect showcase for oregano.

And with my big garden patches of herbs, my goal isn't always to use them all up every year, but to keep the plants healthy so they will flourish year to year. The worst thing is to be invited to my friend Jim's house in the summer when he is trying to "use up" his giant rosemary bush. My palate will be blown for 3 days.

[LindaK]

In general I dislike oregano as an herb. Fresh doesn't seem to have much flavor, dried overpowers quickly. But somewhere, long ago, in a universe far, far, away, I tried a recipe for a summer chicken salad w/ oregano that I love. Over the years I've pared it down to the bare minumum:

- poached chicken, cooled and torn into large chucks/shreds. Add evoo, lots of dried oregano, S&P. Let it sit for at least a few hours, overnight is fine.

- blanch/shock fresh green beans

- cube vine ripe red tomatoes

- toss everything together w/ a squeeze of fresh lemon, a bit more evoo if necessary, S&P to taste.

Serve with excellent bread for mopping up the juices.

[Chris Amirault]

In general I dislike oregano as an herb. Fresh doesn't seem to have much flavor, dried overpowers quickly.

We're hoping to have some oregano in the garden this year, and if we do I'll send you a bunch. I suspect that a lot of hot, direct sun -- and not a hydroponic greenhouse -- is what this Mediterranean herb needs, and when it gets it, it is a potent weed indeed!

[qrn]

I was not to impressed with oregano that I was growing, until I changed to Greek Oregano, its totally different in a good way than the normal stuff...wonder if anyone else has discovered it?

Bud