| Also called ORIGANUM, flavourful dried
leaves and flowering tops of any of various perennial herbs
of the mint family (Lamiaceae, or Labiatae), particularly
Origanum vulgare, called wild marjoram in northern
and central Europe, widely used to season many foods. The
name is derived from the Greek oros, "mountain,"
and ganos, "joy." Oregano has long been an
essential ingredient of Mediterranean cooking. Pliny the Elder
thought it a remedy for bad digestion. The aroma, strong and
aromatic, and the taste, warm, pungent, and bitter, are prominent
in Italian cooking and in robust dishes of certain other cuisines,
such as the Mexican chili con carne. In the United States
the use of oregano rose sharply in the late 20th century,
owing largely to the popularity of pizza. Italians call it
the mushroom herb but use it with many other foods as well.
The Spanish word orégano means marjoram, and the herbs
are sometimes used interchangeably. Native
to the hills of the Mediterranean countries and western
Asia, the herbs were brought to the Western Hemisphere in
early times and are naturalized in parts of Mexico and the
United States.
All varieties contain essential oil. In some,
the principal component of the oil is thymol, in others
carvacrol.
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