The dried lavender is made from lavender flowers and is known for its delicious tone and fragrance. It is usually used to make relaxing tea, but it can be added to savory dishes as well as desserts. The dried lavender tends to be more potent, which is why it’s usually added in a pinch. However, it can be hard to find in regular grocery stores, which brings us to an array of substitutes that you can try for dried lavender!
Substitute For Dried Lavender
- Fresh Lavender
If you don’t have access to dried lavender, you can use fresh variety as well. Lavender is basically a flowering plant that belongs to the mint family, and the fresh flowers have a sweet and floral tone. The fresh lavender might not be as potent as the dried variety, which is why it’s recommended that you add more of it. Fresh lavender goes well with fatty and rich foods because it can cut through the base flavor and enhance the flavor. All in all, it tastes amazing in chicken, lamb, turkey, tuna, or salmon (the fatty fish, basically).
- Parfait d’Amour
This is basically a liquor that’s made with a combination of blossom petals, curacao base, and vanilla. It is known for floral and sweet notes, which everyone wants from dried lavender. For this reason, it can be used in pastries. Keep in mind that Parfait d’Amour can be a bit expensive, but it tastes delicious in baking. In addition, it can be used in custards, cakes, and other desserts. Keep in mind that it has a strong flavor and floral tones, which is why you should only add a few drops to the recipe.
- Rosemary
This is another substitute for dried lavender that you can try, especially if you want to use a dry ingredient. Since rosemary belongs to the mint family, it will add similar flavor and fragrance to the food and has great health benefits as well. For the most part, it has a flavor of pine needles and sweet mint, and one might feel the ginger hints as well. This is basically a Mediterranean herb, which is easily available in grocery stores and supermarkets. It pairs well with different herbs and spices, so you can make a flavorful dish. However, you must add 50% less rosemary as compared to how much dried lavender the recipe asked for because it has a rich and potent flavor.
- Lemon Thyme
As the name suggests, lemon thyme has a lemony flavor, and the overall fragrance is pretty fresh with thyme flavor notes. It can add a strong lemon flavor to the recipe, which is why it can be used as an alternative to dried lavenders. It has a gentle aroma of citrus fruits and adds citrus flavor notes to the recipes. The best thing about lemon thyme is that it’s easy to use, and you can find it at supermarkets. In addition, the lemon thyme is pretty reasonable and can be used in heated bread as well as marinades. It is recommended that you opt for dried lemon thyme and opt for a 3:2 substitution ratio to achieve the best flavor.
- Mint
Mint is comparable to dried lavender and can be added to sweet as well as savory recipes. However, it is recommended that you add mint when the dish is nearly cooked because overcooking mint can result in a bitter flavor. You can add mint to the vegetables, marinades, sauces, salsa, pesto, and pasta. In addition, you can add mint to salads, and you can choose a 1:1 substitution ratio to make sure the flavor doesn’t get intensified.
- Herbes de Provence
It is basically a combination of spices that are native to Provence, France. Lavender is added in a higher percentage and is mixed with tarragon, rosemary, basil, thyme, marjoram, oregano, and cove leaf. The ingredients of the spice mix can vary with the brand, but all of them use lavender as the primary ingredient, which is why you can use it as an alternative.
- Lemon Balm
This is basically a perennial herb that’s known to have purple, pink, or white flowers. It has various medicinal properties as it’s perfect for reducing digestion issues and helps calm the nerves. It has an appealing aroma that pairs well with egg and fish recipes. In addition, you can add it to fruit salads to add the lemony hints.