Fresh or Dried Basil?

I'm right there with you- there's no contest really, fresh is much better and just adds a completely different dimension to your cooking. You can definitely taste the difference.

 

Basil! One of my absolute favourite herbs! As soon as I even get a whiff of it, I start feeling hungry. I particularly like the combination of basil with tomatoes, garlic and a bit of olive oil. It's so easy to toss together a delicious salad in a few minutes. Another favourite of mine is pumpkin soup with basil, ginger and sesame paste. It warms you from the inside and tastes fantastic.

 

I like Basil, and cook with it quite often, both dried and fresh - but I prefer it more in moderation. In something like a pesto, I find basil to be a bit too overpowering, especially if it's something like a pasta dish tossed in a basil pesto. The flavor is just too much for my tastes. That is why I typically make my pestos with parsley and walnuts instead - which is much milder.

When my grandparents used to can their own tomatoes, they would often thrown in a few fresh basil leaves in each jar. It helped give the tomatoes a "fresher" taste when you cooked with them off season. When I do add fresh basil to my pasta sauces, I do it at the very end to preserve it's color and fresh taste.

Strangely though, when it comes to oregano, I actually prefer that dried. I don't care for the fresh oregano leaves as they are a bit tough and chewy unless you spend the time to chop them down finely enough. Plus you need more of them in their fresh state since they are not as concentrated as their dried counterparts and you can wind up with a meal that looks like it has too many herbs in it.

 

Basil seems to lose a lot of it's flavor when it is dried. I have had a plant and it was wonderful. I think if you use dried you just have to use a lot more. I wouldn't say it is bad, it just doesn't quite have that wonderful flavor of the fresh.

 

I agree with dancinglady. Dried is missing so much flavor. Growing up my mom never used fresh basil so I didn't really know what it tasted like until I ate some when I was older. Now I only buy fresh. It's so delicious. Dried will work in a pinch but sometimes I don't even bother.

 

Fresh basil is the best, and it is much cheaper when in season.

Just a tip to getting fresh basil all year round: Buy excess basil when it is in season. Place some chopped basil in an ice cube tray, fill with olive oil and freeze. They can keep for months and taste just as fresh, and the infused oil is great for marinades or dressing.

 

I prefer fresh basil. It grows wild here. So, it is everywhere. It's more practical for me to use fresh basil because I can get it for free. I believe that fresh herbs always taste better than dried herbs. So, I try to make sure I use mostly fresh herbs, especially when I do not have to pay for them.