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Dried marjoram

Aromatic leaves

Dried marjoram

Origanum majorana

Dried marjoram: a sweet, mild cousin of oregano with floral notes, for sausages, stuffings and soups.

Also called: marjoram, majoram

Around the world: Majoran (de) · majeranek (pl)

  • Herbal & green
  • Floral
  • Warm & sweet
  • No heat
Buying & storing8 recipes

Photo: Misterneedlemouse, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0-1.0)

Flavour and aroma

sweet, floral, mild oregano, slightly piney. Sweet, mild, floral.

Heat
No heat
Forms
dried, fresh

How to use it

  • crush · Dry grinding technique

    Rub between your palms and add toward the end of cooking (last 5–10 minutes); its delicate aroma fades in long simmering.

  • use raw

    Mix into sausage meat, meatballs, potato soup and egg dishes.

  • German and Polish sausages and żurek
  • Potato soups and stews
  • Stuffings and meatballs
  • Tomato dishes in place of oregano

Identifying good quality

Small, soft, grey-green dried leaves, finer and paler than oregano, with a sweeter, more perfumed smell.

  • Not to be confused with Dried oregano: Oregano is stronger, more peppery and bitter.

Origin and history

Origin: Cyprus and southern Turkey (Origanum majorana).. Grown and used: Grown in Egypt, France, Hungary and the eastern Mediterranean; used in German, Central European, French, British and Levantine cooking..

Marjoram is a close relative of oregano that has long been used in European cooking. In Germany it is called the 'sausage herb' (Wurstkraut) and is used in sausages, liver dumplings and potato soup, and it is a usual part of herbes de Provence in some versions.

Commonly told; not firmly documented

In masalas, pastes and sauces

Recipes with dried marjoram