Marjoram

Origanum majorana · Herb

40 pairings

Marjoram (Origanum majorana) is the gentle, sweet-scented cousin of oregano — a small, tender Mediterranean herb whose soft grey-green leaves give off a warm, delicately floral, piney-citrus aroma. Milder and sweeter than its hot-tempered relative, it is prized as a finishing herb, stirred in near the end of cooking so its fragile oils survive.

Picking a good onedrag

Just cut, sprigs stiffYellow, shedding, limp

Shop freshThe all-rounder: stuffings, sausage, roast lamb, dressings.Everyday best

Leaf colourGreen, a few lower leaves paling

The sprigsSoft, but the bunch still lifts as one

Cut endsCut ends browning, stems still stiff

Smell when rubbedScent comes, but you must rub a leaf

What to look for, from just cut, sprigs stiff to yellow, shedding, limp.

Keeping ittap a band

A domestic fridge holds it about 5× longer than the counter.

Humidity

90-95%

90-95%, a shade drier than mint or parsley. Bare on a fridge shelf the small leaves go papery within a day.

Airflow

Perforated bag, not sealed

Sealed tight it sweats and the cut ends slime; wide open the sprigs dry. Perforated film, loosely packed.

Yellows and sheds its leaves

It gives off almost none but reacts hard to it: ethylene from apples or bananas yellows the leaves and drops them off the stem.

Preparing