MNN - Mother Nature Network

What's the quickest way to load your dinner down with antioxidants? Add oregano. Need more iron? Add lavender. If you're not utilizing all the fresh herbs overflowing at farmers markets right now, you're missing out nature's real miracles, tiny taste-enhancers loaded with compounds that add antioxidants and vital minerals to every dish, and some that can even cut down on toxic chemicals that form while cooking. Even if you don't care about nutrition, they'll all help you make totally killer meals sure to impress anyone.

 

1. Thyme

Use It: One of the most commonly used medicinal herbs, thyme has been used for everything from killing germs to curing colds. But don't just relegate it to your medicine cabinet. Two teaspoons of the herb pack in nearly 20 percent of your daily requirement for iron, and it's also rich in manganese, a mineral that boosts brain function and aids in healthy bone, skin and cartilage formation.



 

Pairs Best With: Pasta and pizza sauces, salad dressings, stews, poultry, fish and eggs

 


Read More: The 12 greatest disease-fighting foods

 

2. Parsley

Use It: Two tablespoons of fresh parsley will provide more than 150 percent of your daily requirement for vitamin K, which plays an important role in blood clotting, proper bone formation and liver function. A super side benefit of eating parsley is that the herb's odor-beating chlorophyll will freshen your breath — which might spice things up in your bedroom. The ancient Greeks utilized parsley as an aphrodisiac.



 

Pairs Best With: Vegetables and salads

 

3. Lemongrass

Use It: This aromatic, citrusy grass is probably best known for its prevalence in Southeast Asian cuisine. And exotic lemongrass — which derives its flavor and scent from the same compound found in lemon zest — is not only a great addition to recipes, but also is prized in natural medicine for its ability to relieve fever, muscle cramps, upset stomachs and headaches. It's loaded with antioxidants, as well, which help protect against oxidative stress, one of the leading causes of heart disease and cancer. Studies have also found that lemongrass contains antimicrobial properties that fight E. coli.



 

Pairs Best With: Chicken, fish and beef

 


Read More: The wonder herb you aren't using

 

4. Oregano

Use It: If you use only one herb in your cooking, make it oregano. This potent herb (which some chefs think actually tastes better dried) contains up to 20 times more cancer-fighting antioxidants than other herbs, on average, and holds its own against fruit, as well. According to USDA researchers, 1 tablespoon of fresh oregano has the same antioxidant power as an entire apple. And gram for gram, the herb has twice the antioxidant activity of blueberries.

 

Pairs Best With: Tomato sauces, vinaigrettes, poultry and seafood

 

Read More: 7 surprisingly affordable superfoods

 

5. Rosemary

Use It: Who doesn't love a good grilled steak? But exposing meat (red or white) to the hot flames of a grill leads to the formation of heterocyclic amines (HCAs), carcinogenic compounds created when meats are barbecued or grilled. Add rosemary, though, and that doesn't happen, according to researchers from the University of Arkansas, Iowa State University and Kansas State University, who found that cooking meats with rosemary could lower the levels of HCAs by 60 to 80 percent.

 

Pairs Best With: Vegetables, potatoes, eggs, lamb, pork and chicken

 

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Story by Emily Main. This article originally appeared on Rodale.com and is reprinted here with permission.