5 Dried Parsley Substitutes (Best Alternatives)

Parsley is a dried herb often used as a spice in food. It has a slightly peppery flavor and is used to add color to dishes. While it is not essential to any recipe, it can add a touch of flavor that can make all the difference.

If you’re looking for a dried parsley substitute on hand or simply don’t enjoy the taste, there are many different substitutes that you can use instead. Here are five of the best substitutes for dried parsley.

What Is Dried Parsley And Its Uses

Parsley is a dried herb often used as a spice in food. It has a slightly peppery flavor and is used to add color to dishes. While it is not essential to any recipe, it can add a touch of flavor that can make all the difference. Parsley is dried but may not be dried finely enough to use as a spice. It has an earthy taste with some pepperiness that can add color and flavor to your dish.

However, it’s unnecessary in recipes, and dried parsley substitutes aren’t hard to find!

Parsley is dried or fresh ground-up leaves of the herb used to flavor dishes. It’s commonly used in Mediterranean, European, Middle Eastern, and American cuisine.

When dried, parsley has a much stronger taste than fresh, so less of it is needed. Because dried parsley loses its potency over time, it needs to be replaced frequently. It can last up to several months, depending on how well it’s stored (in an airtight container).

Top Dried Parsley Substitute

There are substitutes when dried parsley cannot be found, nor dried parsley is not desired. The dried parsley’s main ingredients are dried parsley leaves, dried parsley flake, or dried parsley powder. So its substitutes should have one or more of these features as well. Fortunately, dried leaves and many spices match quite closely to the flavor profile of dried parsley. Just makes sure that they cover all three categories below: pungent (strong), fragrant (aromatic), and bitter (astringent). Here is a list of some possible replacements for dried parsley:

1) Crushed Rosemary

Rosemary has a similar flavor to dried parsley that can be used as a dried parsley substitute. The difference is that rosemary leaves are generally larger than dried parsley, so less of it needs to be used in recipes.

Also, dried ground-up rosemary works better than fresh chopped rosemary because the latter tends to lose its potency quickly. Crush dried rosemary using your hands or a mortar and pestle to make it smaller and release its flavors faster. Rosemary should last about three months if properly stored).

2) Oregano Leaves Or Ground Oregano

Oregano is native to the Mediterranean but has become popular worldwide. It has a minty, warm and earthy taste that dried parsley lacks.

Oregano is dried ground-up herb leaves that should be easy to find in your local supermarket or grocery store. Like dried rosemary, crush dried oregano using your hands or use a mortar and pestle to release its flavors faster. Ground oregano can last for several months if properly stored (in an air-tight container).

3) Basil Leaves Or Ground Basil

Basil is freshly chopped basil leaves that are dried or dried then crushed into smaller pieces. You can find dried basil in most supermarkets or grocery stores, though the best quality ones may come from health food stores Crush dried basil leaves before adding it to your dish using a mortar and pestle or your hands.

Basil should last about three months if properly stored. Basil is an excellent dried parsley substitute that adds a sweet and anise-like taste to dishes.

4) Fresh Parsley Or Flat Leaf Parsley

If dried parsley isn’t for you, freshly chopped parsley leaves work like dried do in recipes. The difference is that fresh parsley leaves can add additional flavor and color to your dish because dried parsley loses its potency after it’s dried.

It may take some time to get used to the strong taste of dried parsley if you’ve never tried it before, but if you enjoy it, then dried will be just fine for you! Make sure dried or fresh chopped parsley is stored correctly not to dry out too quickly.

5) Ground Ginger

Ground dried ginger is another dried parsley substitute that works the same way dried or fresh parsley does in recipes. It has a warm and spicy taste that dried parsley is missing, but otherwise, it’s just as potent in your recipe.

If you enjoy heavy spices, ground dried ginger would be a suitable dry parsley substitute! Make sure dried or fresh chopped ginger is appropriately stored so it doesn’t dry out too quickly.

Why Is Dried Parsley Used In Recipes?

Dried parsley can be used in many dishes because its flavor blends well with almost every dish ingredient (including meat, vegetables, fish, chicken, and eggs). This means dried parsley can be found in many recipes and dishes worldwide!

Dried parsley may even help mask the smell of some ingredients and give a surefire way to season your dish as dried parsley pairs well with salt, pepper, and other spices that go into most dishes.

Benefits Of Using Dried Parsley In Your Meals

Dried Parsley has a variety of benefits. First, dried parsley is an excellent source of Vitamins A and C, calcium, iron, and magnesium. Second is dried parsley’s fantastic health benefits. Dried parsley may also help prevent cancer because it contains powerful antioxidants known to halt free-radical damage within the body.

When using dried parsley in cooking or salads (etc.), its strong flavor adds depth to the food. Additionally, dried parsley has a much longer shelf-life than fresh parsley. This dried herb can stay usable for weeks or even months, perfect for keeping in your spice cabinet.

Conclusion

In recipes for dried parsley, you can substitute dried basil, rosemary, or thyme. Using dried basil may change the color of your dish slightly, but this will not affect its taste. Instead of dried parsley, dried rosemary and dried thyme have a more robust flavor so use them sparingly as a substitute.

If these substitutes are not available, you can also try dry minced onion or garlic depending on what your dish will be used for (i.e., if the dish is savory, then dried minced onion or dried garlic may be great substitutes).

Dried basil is another dried parsley substitute worth trying because it shares some similarities with dried parsley but has its unique flavor to offer instead. This dried herb is very potent, though, so use sparingly!