Dried summer savory is the usual form of this peppery, thyme-like herb. It seasons beans and pulses, Bulgarian chubritsa dishes and Newfoundland dressing, and dries easily at home.
Dried or fresh?¶
Savory is a woody herb, like thyme, and it dries well; fresh savory is rarely sold anyway, so for most cooks dried is simply how it comes. Dried summer savory is peppery, savoury and thyme-like, a little less green and sharp than the fresh plant. Winter savory, the perennial, is stronger and more bitter in both forms.
Fresh savory is nicer in the few raw or quickly cooked uses, such as tossed with broad beans at the end. For everything that simmers or roasts, dried is the traditional form. See savory for the fresh herb.
In the kitchen¶
- Beans and pulses. The herb's traditional role: ½–1 teaspoon in a pot of broad beans, green beans, white beans or lentils. German Bohnenkraut means "bean herb".
- Newfoundland dressing. About 1 tablespoon of dried summer savory to 250 g breadcrumbs, with a softened onion and butter, for poultry or served alongside it.
- Bulgaria. Chubritsa seasons bean soup (bob chorba), stews, meatballs and grilled meats, and goes into sharena sol, the mixed herb salt sprinkled on buttered bread.
- Blends. Savory (sarriette) is a traditional part of herbes-de-provence.
Because of its peppery bite, a little dried savory lifts soups and pulses without extra salt.
How much to use¶
About ½–1 teaspoon of dried savory for a sprig of fresh, or 1 teaspoon for 1 tablespoon chopped fresh. For a pot of beans or soup serving four, 1 teaspoon of summer savory is a good start. Use about two-thirds as much winter savory, as its bitterness builds in long cooking.
Buying and storing¶
Dried summer savory is sold by specialist spice merchants and by Eastern European, Balkan and Canadian grocers. Keep it airtight, away from light and heat, and replace it after about a year.
Savory dries very easily: cut summer savory just as it starts to flower, hang it in bunches, then strip the leaves into a jar. See drying-herbs.