If you love to cook with herbs, you’ll find yourself surfing the web for names of herbs, conversion of fresh to dry, storage of herbs, and many other questions. For instance, what is a sprig of thyme? What’s the ratio of dry thyme to a sprig of thyme?
Indeed, the kitchen is a place of a lot of questions.
While herbs are not a big deal for some, they are just as important as a meal itself for others.
If you fall in the latter, this article is of interest to you. Continue reading to see all the details you’ll like to know about a sprig of thyme and its corresponding measurements.
What is thyme?
Thyme, Thymus vulgaris, is a universal herb that has dietary, medicinal, and ornamental purposes. Thyme is available in fresh, dry, and ground forms.
The dry and ground forms of this herb are known for their strong aroma that can overpower your meals if you don’t use them sparingly.
Thyme gives a hint of mint (because it belongs to the mint family) to your meals; it could also be a little spicy and salty. This is one popular herb used to make stews, sauces, broths, and many other dishes.
What is a sprig of thyme?
A sprig of thyme is a twig of fresh thyme leaves on it. It is a woody stem of about 4 to 6 inches.
Some recipes call for this fresh form of thyme, that is, the sprig or just the leaves. It is easier to cook with sprigs of thyme because the flavor does not easily overpower the meal.
If you’ll need just the leaves, you’ll have to pluck them off the stem.
How much dry thyme is equal to one sprig of thyme?
One unit of fresh thyme is equal to 1/3 unit of dry thyme. The best way to measure this is to use a teaspoon to measure the dry thyme.
Dry thyme is more potent and has a stronger aroma than fresh thyme. Therefore, you cannot do a one-to-one ratio when replacing fresh thyme with dry thyme.
Where can you buy thyme sprigs?
You can buy thyme sprigs in the produce section of grocery stores or at local farmer’s markets.
How to preserve thyme sprig
You can preserve thyme sprigs by either storing them in the refrigerator or freezer. Follow these steps to refrigerate or freeze your thyme sprigs:
- Gather the amount of sprig of thyme you want to preserve
- Swirl them gently in cold water to remove soil and bugs
- If you need to repeat the above step, do so
- When they are clean, place the sprigs of thyme between two paper towels to absorb the moisture
- Make sure they are fully dry before you proceed to the next step
- Afterward, divide the sprigs into small portions that you can use at once
- Transfer the portions of dry sprigs into small bags, squeeze out as much air as you can and seal the bags
- Put all the small bags of thyme sprigs into a bigger freezer bag or an airtight container and seal
- You can proceed to refrigerate or freeze. Make sure you keep the bag where it is coldest in the refrigerator or freezer
How to dry thyme sprigs
If you have harvested a lot of thyme sprigs from your backyard garden and don’t know what to do with the abundance, make dry thyme leaves from the fresh sprigs and store them for a long period. Here’s how to:
- Gather your thyme sprigs and swirl them gently in a bowl of cold water
- When you have rinsed off the dirt and bugs, place them between paper towels to absorb the moisture
- Dry the sprigs through any of these methods:
1. Air-drying
If you’re sure about a friendly climate and weather for drying, you can use this method. Tie the sprigs together with twine and hand them on a cloth hanger or herb drying rack.
Keep them away from direct exposure to sunlight but in a warm and ventilated area. This may take one to two weeks before you have fully dried thyme.
2. Oven or microwave drying
If your weather or climate won’t support air-drying, dry fresh thyme leaves in the oven or microwave. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange the clean thyme sprigs on it. Make sure they don’t overlap each other.
Put the tray in the oven at the lowest temperature. The lower the temperature, the longer it takes to dry. A temperature below 120°F will take up to four hours before the thyme is fully dried. Above 180°F will dry the thyme within two hours.
3. With a dehydrator
Dehydrating thyme sprigs is the fastest way to get them dry. At 100°F, you can get thyme sprigs completely dry within 2-3 hours, depending on how much of it you’re drying.
FAQs
How much ground thyme is equal to dried thyme?
One teaspoon of ground thyme is equal to one teaspoon of dry thyme. Ground thyme is very potent and has a more intense flavor than dry thyme.
Can you substitute dry thyme for a sprig of thyme?
Yes, you can. You can easily replace fresh thyme with dry thyme. However, you should know that dry herbs have a stronger aroma and can easily overpower your dish.
Replace one tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves with one teaspoon of dry thyme. This applies to other herbs too.
How many teaspoons of thyme is one sprig of thyme?
One sprig of thyme is equal to ¼ to ¾ of a teaspoon.
How many tablespoons of thyme are in two sprigs of thyme?
Two sprigs of thyme are equal to one tablespoon of fresh thyme. After drying, it reduces to 1/3 of the tablespoon.
Why does a recipe call for a sprig of thyme?
If your recipe calls for a sprig of thyme, it means the stem will be removed from the dish before serving the meal.
When you have to remove it, you’ll find only a woody stem because the leaves would have fallen off during cooking.
Conclusion
A sprig of thyme is not a unit of measurement for thyme. It refers to a twig of fresh thyme.
One recipe may call for fresh thyme while another calls for an exact amount like teaspoons, tablespoons, or a pound.
If you got sprigs of thyme from the market, pull off the leaves to get the exact measurements your recipe requires.
Also, if your recipe calls for a sprig, but all you have is dry thyme, follow the ratio in the article and save yourself any trouble.
Thanks for reading.
Read informational articles about herbs conversion, uses, and substitutes on Millenora.
