Winter savory, raw (organic?)

Winter savory ( Satureja montana), also known as mountain savory It is typically used to season bean dishes. Raw (and preferably in organic quality) it also tastes good in salads.

Use in the kitchen

Winter savory or mountain savory ( Satureja montana) is, together with summer savory ( Satureja hortensis), also known as garden savory or pepper herb, the best-known type of savory. In contrast to the milder, rather sweet-tasting summer savory, winter savory has a spicy, hot, pepper-like taste. Another distinguishing feature from summer savory is the dark green and leathery leaves of mountain savory.

Fresh and dried leaves and shoots of winter savory can be used. Small amounts are highly effective as a seasoning, so it should be used sparingly and added towards the end of the cooking time. To regulate the intensity of the flavor, you can also cook individual branches and remove them before serving.

Winter savory is a typical and ideal accompaniment to all kinds of dishes with green beans. You can use the herb to season bean stir-fries, stews, salads and flans. It also goes well with other pulses such as broad beans, kidney beans, white beans, lentils and chickpeas and makes them more digestible. Winter savory also makes hearty and heavy dishes such as white cabbage and sausages (including vegan ones) easier to digest. Its strong flavour goes excellently with dishes with mushrooms and potatoes such as gratin, mashed potatoes or fried potatoes. The herb can also be used to season vegan cream soups, risotto or omelettes. There are also a few winter savory recipes for desserts. Mountain savory gives pastries and cakes (e.g. lemon cake) a unique flavour.

Can you eat savory raw? The herb can also be eaten raw. You can add it to all kinds of salads (including salad dressing). Tomatoes, cucumbers and onions taste good with savory. Herb dips for raw vegetable sticks can also be spiced up with the herb.

Along with thyme, rosemary and oregano, dried savory is one of the classic French herb mixtures " Herbs of Provence ". ¹ Dried savory can also be used to make tea. Various types of savory are suitable for this, but the winter savory variety Lemon Mountain Savory ( Satureja montana var. citriodora) is particularly good with its warm, lemony aroma.

Vegan recipe for green bean salad with savory

Ingredients (for 2 people): 500 g green beans, 2 stalks of winter savory (fresh, organic), 1 onion, 2 tbsp white wine vinegar, 1 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed oil, ½ tsp agave syrup, a little salt andpepper.

Preparation: Wash the green beans, remove the ends and cut into pieces about 4 cm long. Rinse the savory, put it in a pot of boiling salted water with the beans and cook for about 10 minutes until al dente. Peel the onion and dice finely. For the dressing, mix the white wine vinegar, rapeseed oil and agave syrup and season with salt and pepper. Pour away the cooking water from the beans and remove the savory. Add the diced onion to the beans and stir in the dressing. Cover the vegan green bean salad and leave it in the fridge for about 2 hours before serving.

Vegan recipes with winter savory can be found under the note: " Recipes that have the most of this ingredient ".

Purchasing - Storage

Many large retailers (e.g. Coop, Migros, Spar, Billa) and organic supermarkets (e.g. Denn's Biomarkt, Alnatura) only offer savory dried, but they do so all year round. The dried herb is mostly found shredded in spice jars or bags. Savory can be bought not only dried but also fresh in the two supermarkets Edeka and Rewe. Other supermarkets (e.g. Denner, Volg, Aldi, Lidl, Hofer) do not regularly offer either fresh or dried savory.

It is often unclear whether the products are summer savory or winter savory. If you want to be on the safe side, buy winter savory online or in garden centers as a potted plant.

The availability of winter savory varies depending on the size of the store, catchment area, etc. You can find our recorded food prices for the DA-CH countries above under the ingredient image - and by clicking you can see their development at various suppliers.

Storage tips

Fresh winter savory is best stored wrapped in a damp cloth in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator and used within a few days. However, it can also be stored like cut flowers in a container of water for a few days.

Winter savory is well suited to drying and retains its flavor even when stored for a long time. However, after about a year, the flavor-giving ingredients of the savory are expected to decrease. Pickling in vinegar or oil and freezing are other natural ways of preserving it.

Ingredients - Nutritional values - Calories

100 g of fresh savory (raw) has a calorie content of 54 kcal. Fat (1 g/100g) and protein (1.1 g/100g) are low. Carbohydrates are contained at 8.8 g/100g and the fiber content is 2.5 g/100g. ²

The calcium content in raw savory is 349 mg/100g (44% of the daily requirement). This is similar to that of cow parsley (400 mg/100g) and fenugreek leaves (328 mg/100g). Significantly more calcium can be found in fennel seeds (1196 mg/100g) or in dried herbs, such as dried basil with 2240 mg/100g or dried marjoram with 1990 mg/100g - but you consume much less of it. ^2,3

Fresh savory contains 6.2 mg of iron per 100 g (44% of the daily requirement). Fresh parsley (6.2 mg/100g) and fresh dill (6.6 mg/100g) contain a similar amount. Dried herbs contain significantly more iron, such as dried thyme with 124 mg/100g and dried marjoram with 83 mg/100g. ^2,3

0.82 mg of manganese are found in 100 g of fresh savory (41% of the daily requirement). Fresh marjoram (0.9 mg/100g) and hemp nettle (0.78 mg/100g) contain a similar amount, while fresh sage, with 4 mg/100g, contains almost five times as much manganese. ^2.3

The complete ingredients of winter savory (raw), the coverage of the daily requirement and comparison values with other ingredients can be found in our nutrient tables. In the article Nutrients explained you will get a detailed insight into the topic.

Health effects

Is savory healthy? Winter savory ( Satureja montana) contains the two secondary plant substances carvacrol and thymol. Both substances are components of essential oils and have medicinal effects, such as antimicrobial properties against a broad spectrum of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, such as Pasteurella aerogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae and Acinetobacter baumannii and against the fungus Candida albicans. ^4,5 The rosmarinic acid it contains also has an antimicrobial effect. ⁶

Anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiproliferative, diuretic and antidiarrheal properties of the extracts and essential oils have also been proven. ^6,7

According to a 2020 study, winter savory essential oil and tinctures could be used as ingredients in oral liquids, drops, and antimicrobial sprays for the treatment of foodborne illnesses, oral and respiratory infections, and wounds. ⁸

Results from an animal study on male rats in 2011 suggest that winter savory could be considered as a natural remedy for the treatment of premature ejaculation. In the experiments, the plant delayed ejaculation latency without negatively affecting other parameters of sexual behavior and without exerting a sedative effect. ⁷ Another animal model study from 2022 also reports an anxiolytic (anxiety-relieving) effect of winter savory. ⁹

Dangers - Intolerances - Side effects

Is the use of savory dangerous? Ingested in small quantities, such as as a spice, winter savory is most likely not dangerous. However, there is not yet enough information about the safety of using larger quantities and as a medicine. It is recommended that the isolated essential oil be used internally only under medical supervision and not during pregnancy. ^1,10

Folk medicine - natural medicine

In traditional medicine, winter savory is used to treat inflammation of the respiratory tract. For example, winter savory honey is a traditional remedy for bronchitis. ^7,8,10 The plant, essential oils and extracts are also used for their digestive, appetite-stimulating, carminative (flatulent), bactericidal and antifungal effects. The healing properties of Satureja montana can be used internally for digestive problems, nausea, colic, diarrhea, menstrual problems and externally for sore throats and insect bites. ^1,7,10 Does winter savory have an aphrodisiac effect? The plant is also said to have an aphrodisiac effect. ⁷

Ecological footprint - animal welfare

Savory is a food that goes hand in hand with the goal of a climate-friendly diet. It has a very low CO2 and water footprint ; surprisingly, even when you put these footprints in relation to the nutrients in the savory: 100 g _CO2 / (1/3 of the daily requirement of nutrients). In general, plant-based foods usually have a very good ecological balance - as long as they have not been imported by plane and treated with countless pesticides. Animal products, in particular meat, are very harmful to the environment. ¹⁸

The _carbon footprint of a food product depends on various factors. The type of agricultural production (conventional vs. organic), average or seasonal or regional production, domestic production or import by truck, ship or plane, different types of packaging and whether the product is fresh or frozen all play a decisive role.

Fresh, unpackaged winter savory from organic farming that has not been transported too far is preferable.

Detailed explanations of various sustainability indicators (such as ecological footprint, _CO2 footprint, water footprint) can be found here.

Animal welfare - species protection

Mixed cultures, or similar practices to use the interactions of organisms in ecosystems, can be summarized as 'ecological methods'. These methods also attempt to limit harmful interventions in the environment.

One study looked more closely at the effect of mixed crops: carrots with coriander and summer savory ( Satureja hortensis). The result was very positive; losses due to pests were reduced. The mixed crop with summer savory in particular produced very beautiful, healthy carrots. Both herbs in the mixed carrot crop showed positive effects on beneficial insects. For example, ladybirds and hoverflies - two classic beneficial insects - were very attracted to the mixed crop, in contrast to the monoculture. ¹⁷

Worldwide occurrence - cultivation

Winter savory is native to southern Europe. However, it is cultivated throughout Europe, in Russia and Turkey. ^6,8,10

Wild

Winter savory ( Satureja montana) grows wild in dry, sunny and rocky areas in the Mediterranean. ^{7, 8,10}

Four subspecies have been identified that differ in their distribution areas. Satureja montana subsp. macedonica grows mainly in northern Greece, Satureja montana subsp. montana occurs in southern and southeastern Europe, Satureja montana subsp. pisidia is found in the northwestern Balkan peninsula and from Turkey to Lebanon, Satureja montana subsp. variegata is native to northeastern Italy to the western Balkan peninsula. ^11,12,13,14

Growing your own

How do you grow your own savory? Winter savory is very easy to grow in the garden or in a pot on the balcony. It prefers light, calcareous soil in a warm, sunny and sheltered location. The plant tolerates dryness and poor soil better than moisture and soil that is too rich in nutrients. ¹⁵

You can start growing them from April to May and sow seeds in seed trays or directly outdoors. Since the herb is a light-germinating plant, the winter savory seeds should only be covered with a thin layer of soil. The seeds should be kept moist until they germinate. From May, the young plants that have been grown in seed trays or purchased can be planted outdoors (30 x 30 cm apart). When can you harvest savory? The ideal time to harvest is shortly before or during flowering in summer. Winter savory then contains large amounts of concentrated aromatic substances. To harvest, cut off branches close to the ground. ¹⁵

Can you dry savory? If you have too much fresh mountain savory, you can dry it yourself. To do this, bundle the branches and hang them upside down in an airy place without direct sunlight and let them dry for a few days. Drying is also possible in the oven or dehydrator and is quicker (a few hours). The temperature should not exceed 40 °C so that the essential oils that give the herbs their flavor are not lost. In addition, herbs dried at temperatures below 42 °C are considered raw food. As soon as the herb is dry, which you can tell by the leaves rustling when touched and the stems breaking easily, strip the savory leaves from the branches and fill them into airtight containers. ¹⁶

By the way: The aromatic scent of the mountain savory repels harmful insects and attracts bees and other insects, which is why it is one of the best honey plants. ⁷

Further information

Winter savory ( Satureja montana) or mountain savory belongs to the mint family (Lamiaceae). The evergreen subshrub, which is about 40 cm high, has branched stems that are woody at the base with shiny, dark green, about 1 cm long, opposite leaves that are lanceolate and widen at the tips. The white to pink-violet savory flowers, which grow in terminal panicles, are two-lipped and have purple spots on the lower tips. The savory flowers from July to September. ^7,10

Is summer savory perennial? Summer savory ( Satureja hortensis) is annual and must be re-sown every year, while winter savory is hardy and perennial.

The Roman scholar Pliny named the genus Satureja. Its name comes from the Latin "satureia", which means "herb of the satyrs". For this reason, its cultivation was previously forbidden in monasteries. ⁷

Alternative names

Winter savory (winter savory) is also called mountain savory (mountain savory) or karst mountain mint. Savory in general is also known by the names Saturei, Pfefferkraut and Kölle. Incorrect spellings such as winter savory, mountain savory creep in.

In English, savory is called savory, winter savory is called winter savory and mountain savory is called mountain savory.

Other uses

Due to their pleasant smell, many Satureja species are used in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. ⁸