What is the difference between powdered and dried herbs ?!
Answers: I was looking for a recipes for taco seasoning and one has Powdered Oregano and the other has Dried Oregano. I think it the same, but I thought I would ask.
They are different. The powdered have been ground to almost a dust, whereas the dried may be whole leafs.
Powdered herbs lose their potency very rapidly. All that surface area is exposed to air and the flavor dissipates. Powdered herbs have a very short shelf life. Don't buy them if you can avoid it.
If you don't have the fresh herb on hand or some in the freezer (most freeze extremely well), use the whole-leaf dried version and grind it in a mortar with a pestle if you need the powdered for a specific recipe.
Sometimes a recipe will use powdered because it will disperse more evenly among the other ingredients if the dish isn't going to be cooked (or cooked long) or allowed to sit for long enough to allow the flavor of the herb in infuse it. Spices are often powdered because their original sources are hard rather than soft leaves like herbs.
yeah, i was gonna say what clare said but she beat me to it
Powdered means the herb is ground up and made into powder. Dried means the herb is dry, but still whole instead of being ground into powder.