Oregano Mint hybrid

[ChrisZ]

Like many people we grow a selection of herbs, for the past few years our oregano plants have shared a big pot with our mint. This year it seems that they have cross pollinated and the plants which have popped up since spring (southern hemisphere, we're coming into summer now) seem to be some sort of oregano / mint cross. They both look and smell / taste like a cross between oregano and mint.

Just wondering if anyone else has had this happen? Apart from the novelty value, I'm not really sure what to do with it. If you had a pot of herbs that tasted like a cross between oregano and mint, what would you do with it?

[SylviaLovegren]

They are both in the mint family...

Seems like Greek or Middle Eastern cooking might work with that combo. Would be good in a Greek/Turkish shepherd's salad. Anything with feta in it.

[Smithy]

Sylvia's onto something. I'd add lamb: kebabs, stew, roast. Oregano and mint both go well with that meat.

[gfweb]

Like many people we grow a selection of herbs, for the past few years our oregano plants have shared a big pot with our mint. This year it seems that they have cross pollinated and the plants which have popped up since spring (southern hemisphere, we're coming into summer now) seem to be some sort of oregano / mint cross. They both look and smell / taste like a cross between oregano and mint.

Just wondering if anyone else has had this happen? Apart from the novelty value, I'm not really sure what to do with it. If you had a pot of herbs that tasted like a cross between oregano and mint, what would you do with it?

I'd see what the plannt's seeds grew into.

[Martin Fisher]

I've heard of closely related genera such as fennel and dill crossing---oregano and mint also fall in that category----but I've never had it occur.

[Plantes Vertes]

I would probably abandon abstinence as a strategy for birth control in the herbal population, and then serve it with some roasted squash, or griddled courgette with lemon, or a watermelon and feta salad, a Greek salad with white beans or more feta, or in a yogurt dressing for lamb, or in a rice or quinoa salad, or a stew with tomatoes, onion, aubergine and chickpeas.

[ChrisZ]

Cool, thanks for the suggestions. I have some lamb cooking now and am looking forward to seeing how it turns out. Next up we will try it with grilled haloumi and pineapple, and probably the watermelon with feta when we get some watermelons.

I hadn't looked closely at the oregano before today, and only about half of it is the hybrid - there's some normal oregano in amongst the lot. But the minty stuff is really minty, I'm not sure if it's going to be especially unique in terms of flavour.