Information about Oregano

Oregano

Flowering oregano

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Lamiaceae
Genus:	Origanum
Species:	*O. vulgare*

Binomial name

Origanum vulgare
L.

Oregano or Pot Marjoram (Origanum vulgare) is a species of Origanum, native to Europe, the Mediterranean region and southern and central Asia. It is a perennial herb, growing to 20-80 cm tall, with opposite leaves 1-4 cm long. The flowers are purple, 3-4 mm long, produced in erect spikes. Its name derives from the Greek origanon [ὀρίγανον]: oros [ὄρος] “mountain” + the verb ganousthai [γανοῦσθαι] “delight in”.

Cultivation and uses

Oregano growing in a field.

The subspecies of oregano Origanum vulgare hirtum is an important culinary herb. It is particularly widely used in Greek and Italian cuisines. It is the leaves that are used in cooking, and the dried herb is often more flavourful than the fresh.

Oregano is often used in tomato sauces, fried vegetables and grilled meat. Together with basil, it contributes much to the distinctive character of many Italian dishes.

Oregano combines nicely with pickled olives, capers and lovage leaves. Unlike most Italian herbs, oregano works with hot and spicy food, which is popular in southern Italy.

Oregano is an indispensable ingredient for Greek cuisine. Oregano adds flavour to the Greek salad and is usually used separately or added to the lemon-olive oil sauce that accompanies almost every fish or meat barbecues and some casseroles.

Oregano growing in a pot.

It has an aromatic, warm and slightly bitter taste. It varies in intensity; good quality is so strong that it almost numbs the tongue, but the cultivars adapted to colder climates have often unsatisfactory flavour. The influence of climate, season and soil on the composition of the essential oil is greater than the difference between the various species.

The related species Origanum onites (Greece, Asia Minor) and O. heracleoticum (Italy, Balkan peninsula, West Asia) have similar flavours. A closely related plant is marjoram from Asia Minor, which, however, differs significantly in taste, because phenolic compounds are missing in its essential oil. Some breeds show a flavour intermediate between oregano and marjoram.

Pizza

The dish most associated with oregano is pizza. Its relatives have probably been eaten in Southern Italy for centuries.

Health benefits

Oregano is high in antioxidant activity, due to a high content of phenolic acids and flavonoids (PMID 16218659, PMID 12730411). Additionally, oregano has demonstrated antimicrobial activity against food-borne pathogens such as Listeria monocytogenes (PMID 16218659). Both of these characteristics may be useful in both health and food preservation. In the Philippines, oregano (coleus aromaticus) is not commonly used for cooking but is rather considered as a primarily medicinal plant, useful for relieving children's coughs.

Branch of dried oregano

Other plants called oregano

Mexican oregano, Lippia graveolens (Verbenaceae) is closely related to lemon verbena. It is a highly studied herb that is said to be of some medical use and is common in curandera female shamanic practices in Mexico and the Southwestern United States. Mexican oregano has a very similar flavour to oregano, but is usually stronger. It is becoming more commonly sold outside of Mexico, especially in the United States. It is sometimes used as a substitute for epazote leaves; this substitution would not work the other way round.

Several other plants are also known as oregano in various parts of Mexico, including Poliomintha longiflora, Lippia berlandieri, and Plectranthus amboinicus (syn. Coleus aromaticus), also called Cuban oregano.

References and external links

• • [ e]

Herbs and spices

Herbs

Angelica • Basil • Basil, holy • Basil, Thai • Bay leaf • Boldo • Borage • Cannabis • Chervil • Chives • Coriander leaf (cilantro) • Curry leaf • Dill • Epazote • Eryngium foetidum (long coriander) • Hoja santa • Houttuynia cordata (giấp c) • Hyssop • Lavender • Lemon balm • Lemon grass • Lemon verbena • Limnophila aromatica (rice paddy herb) • Lovage • Marjoram • Mint • Mitsuba • Oregano • Parsley • Perilla (shiso) • Rosemary • Rue • Sage • Savory • Sorrel • Stevia • Tarragon • Thyme • Vietnamese coriander (rau răm) • Woodruff

Spices

African pepper • Ajwain (bishop's weed) • Aleppo pepper • Allspice • Amchur (mango powder) • Anise • Aromatic ginger • Asafoetida • Camphor • Caraway • Cardamom • Cardamom, black • Cassia • Cayenne pepper • Celery seed • Chili • Cinnamon • Clove • Coriander seed • Cubeb • Cumin • Cumin, black • Dill seed • Fennel • Fenugreek • Fingerroot (krachai) • Galangal, greater • Galangal, lesser • Garlic • Ginger • Grains of Paradise • Horseradish • Juniper berry • Liquorice • Mace • Mahlab • Malabathrum (tejpat) • Mustard, black • Mustard, brown • Mustard, white • Nasturtium • Nigella (kalonji) • Nutmeg • Paprika • Pepper, black • Pepper, green • Pepper, long • Pepper, pink, Brazilian • Pepper, pink, Peruvian • Pepper, white • Pomegranate seed (anardana) • Poppy seed • Saffron • Sarsaparilla • Sassafras • Sesame • Sichuan pepper (huājiāo, sansho) • Star anise • Sumac • Tasmanian pepper • Tamarind • Turmeric • Wasabi • Zedoary

Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. Scientific classification also can be called scientific taxonomy, but should be distinguished from folk taxonomy, which lacks scientific basis.
..... Click the link for more information.

Plantae
Haeckel, 1866^[1]

Divisions

Green algae

Chlorophyta
Charophyta

Land plants (embryophytes)

Non-vascular land plants (bryophytes)

..... Click the link for more information.

Magnoliophyta

Classes

Magnoliopsida - Dicots
Liliopsida - Monocots

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of land plants. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms comprise the two extant groups of seed plants.
..... Click the link for more information.

Magnoliopsida
Brongniart

Orders

See text.
Dicotyledons, or "dicots", is a name for a group of flowering plants whose seed typically contains two embryonic leaves or cotyledons.
..... Click the link for more information.

Lamiales
Bromhead

Families

See text

The order Lamiales is a taxon in the asterid group of dicotyledonous flowering plants. Lamiales formerly had a restricted circumscription (e.g.
..... Click the link for more information.

Lamiaceae
Lindley

Genera

Many, see text

Ref: Watson and Dallwitz
2002-07-22

Lamiaceae or Labiatae, also known as the Mint family, is a family of plants in about 210 genera and some 3,500 species.
..... Click the link for more information.

Origanum
Tourn. ex L.

Species

About 20 species, including:
Origanum acutidens
Origanum amanum
Origanum calcaratum
Origanum dictamnus (Dittany of Crete; Hop Marjoram)
Origanum laevigatum
..... Click the link for more information.

binomial nomenclature is the formal system of naming species. The system is also called binominal nomenclature (particularly in zoological circles), binary nomenclature (particularly in botanical circles), or the binomial classification system.
..... Click the link for more information.

Carolus Linnaeus (Carl von Linné)

Carl von Linné, Alexander Roslin, 1775. Currently owned by and hanging at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
..... Click the link for more information.

Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. Physically and geologically, Europe is the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, west of Asia. Europe is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the Mediterranean Sea,
..... Click the link for more information.

The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which
..... Click the link for more information.

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area (or 29.4% of its land area) and, with almost 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population.
..... Click the link for more information.

original research or unverifiable claims.
* It needs additional references or sources for verification.

Please help [ improve the article] or discuss these issues on the talk page.
..... Click the link for more information.

Herbs (IPA: hə(ɹ)b, or əɹb; see pronunciation differences) are seed-bearing plants without woody stems, which die down to the ground after flowering.
..... Click the link for more information.

leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat (laminar) and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast (chlorenchyma tissue, a type of parenchyma) to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate
..... Click the link for more information.

Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism.
If you are prevented from editing this page, and you wish to make a change, please discuss changes on the talk page, request unprotection, log in, or .
..... Click the link for more information.

Greek cuisine is the cuisine of Greece and of the Greeks . It is typical of Mediterranean cuisine^[] accompanied by commonalities with the cuisines of Southern France, Italy, the Balkans, Anatolia, and the Middle East.
..... Click the link for more information.

Italian cuisine as a national cuisine known today has evolved from centuries of social and political change. Its roots can be traced back to 4th century BCE and into the Middle Ages which brought Arab and Norman influence to certain regions along with introduction of notable chefs
..... Click the link for more information.

O. basilicum

Binomial name
Ocimum basilicum
L.

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) (IPA: /ˈbeɪzəl/
..... Click the link for more information.

O. europaea

Binomial name
Olea europaea
L.

The Olive (Olea europaea) is a species of small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean region, from
..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.

Lovage can refer to:

Lovage, a plant, the leaves of which are used to flavor food and the root of which is used as a diuretic
Lovage (band), a musical project headed by Dan the Automator and Mike Patton

..... Click the link for more information.

Greek salad, χωριάτικη σαλάτα (IPA: [xorˈjatiki saˈlata]
..... Click the link for more information.

odor or odour (see spelling differences) is a volatilized chemical compound, generally at a very low concentration, which humans and other animals perceive by the sense of olfaction. Odors are also called smells, which can refer to both pleasant and unpleasant odors.
..... Click the link for more information.

Motto
Ελευθερία ή θάνατος
Eleftheria i thanatos
..... Click the link for more information.

This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.
You can assist by [ editing it] now. A how-to guide is available, as is general .
This article has been tagged since September 2007.
..... Click the link for more information.

Anthem
Il Canto degli Italiani
(also known as Fratelli d'Italia)

..... Click the link for more information.

Oregano

Cultivation and uses

Health benefits

Other plants called oregano

See also

References and external links