How should I measure dried epazote?

May 15, 2013 7:39 PM

I have a bag of dried epazote for beans. Two problems. First, it's a mix of coarser, stalky material and leaf matter of varying fineness. Should I run it through a food processor to make it uniform (like, say, dried oregano) before measuring? Second, how much (processed or not) should I use to a pound of beans? I've seen everything from 1 tsp to 2 tbsp. One tsp of coarse would be nothing like 2 tbsp of fine, for example.
posted by obiwanwasabi to Food & Drink (6 answers total)

Best answer: Epazote is not an herb that, if off by a tablespoon, is going to ruin your beans. I principally use it to aid digestion, but it does add a nice subtle flavor. It's not the same as if it was rosemary or something. I know what you mean about the texture, but I would just get the approximate amount. For a pound, probably 1-2 T.
posted by SpicyMustard at 7:59 PM on May 15, 2013

Best answer: I like to crush epazote between my fingers or grind it briefly in a mortar and pestle before I measure it, no need to get out the food processor. As SpicyMustard notes, it's not a particularly pungent herb so you don't need to worry about measuring too much. I use a heaping teaspoon of gently crushed epazote per can of beans.
posted by divined by radio at 8:08 PM on May 15, 2013

Best answer: I put my epazote twigs in a mesh tea ball. So, I use a mesh tea ball amount in a dutch oven of beans, starting with two cups dried black beans. My mesh tea ball is a bit bigger than a golf ball and I usually run the epazote through a food chopper when I first buy the bag. It's still twigs and leaves, though, not all finely chopped.
posted by looli at 8:56 PM on May 15, 2013

Best answer: I try to separate out the straw-like bits and just use the finer material. I also wouldn't be concerned about fine measurements.
posted by canoehead at 7:47 AM on May 16, 2013

... because it's a subtle flavor and the quality of the packaged product is inconsistent.

In the past I have found product that had the consistency of dried oregano but haven't seen it lately
posted by canoehead at 12:34 PM on May 16, 2013

Response by poster: Thanks everybody! I used looli's tea ball idea - maybe 1.5 tbps to 500g of beans. The epazote was very subtle.

(noms black beans and avocado on toast)
posted by obiwanwasabi at 5:08 PM on May 18, 2013