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Herbs and spices

Herbs and spices are aromatic plant ingredients used fresh or dried to season and flavor foods.

Herbs and spices — illustrative ingredient image

About Herbs and spices

Herbs and spices is a broad culinary grouping for aromatic plant ingredients used to flavour food. Herbs usually refer to leaves or tender green parts, while spices commonly come from seeds, bark, roots, fruits, buds, or other plant parts. Culinary boundaries between the terms are not completely uniform.

Flavour, aroma, colour, and texture vary widely with the plant and its preparation. Ingredients may be fresh, dried, whole, cracked, ground, or infused, appearing as green leaves, fragrant seeds, woody pieces, pungent powders, or brightly coloured dried fruits.

They season soups, sauces, curries, baked goods, pickles, marinades, meats, vegetables, and rice dishes. Herbs and spices may be used alone, combined in blends, added at the beginning or end of cooking, or infused and removed before serving. Their form affects how quickly flavour is released.

Ingredient type
seasoning

Forms & related ingredients

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Where herbs and spices appears

25 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Showing 13–24 of 25

Main dishes

Snacks

Salads

Rice dishes

Sauces

Street food

Other dishes

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for herbs and spices

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

herbs and spices

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Herbs and spices nutrition & diet

Herbs and spices nutritional value

Product example: FRESH HERBS & SPICES (PINCH PLUS!)

Per 100 g of this specific product as recorded by USDA, per 100 g.

Calories
0kcal
Protein
0.0g
Carbs
40.0g
Fat
0.0g

A product-specific label example, not a generic average. Formulations can change; use the nutrition label on the product being eaten.

Portions & preparation

This broad label requires identification of the individual herbs or spices and their forms. Record whether ingredients are fresh, dried, ground, whole, infused, or blended, and check for salt, sugar, starch, or oil. Use the actual recipe amount; a generic category reference may be misleading.

Compare the right form: Match the reference to identified species, edible plant parts, fresh or dried processing, and the exact blend or packaged product.

Diet considerations

These ingredients are plant-derived when they are clearly identified as herbs or spices alone. Packaged blends may include dairy, animal flavorings, cereal ingredients, coatings, or processing aids, so compatibility is formulation-specific. Portion-dependent carbohydrate patterns generally reflect the overall recipe, especially sauces, grain-based coatings, and added sweeteners.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Not established
  • Vegetarian
    Not established
  • Pescatarian
    Not established
  • Keto
    Not established
  • Paleo
    Not established
  • Low-carb
    Not established
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Vegetarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Pescatarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Keto · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Paleo · Not established
The ingredient form and processing have not been assessed against this dietary pattern.
Low-carb · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: USDA FoodData Central branded product — FRESH HERBS & SPICES ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .