Oregano, Buck's Fifth Avenue Spices - 1/2 cup, about .76 oz by weight

Oregano is a warm and aromatic yet slightly bitter herb in the mint family. Good quality oregano has a pungency that numbs the tongue. The name is derived from the Greek, meaning "mountain of joy". Sunlight encourages the concentration of the essential oils that give oregano its flavor. Greek oregano is bright and sweet tasting with lemony overtones, and is a flavor we often associate with Italian cooking. It was hardly used in the US until after World War II, when many returning GIs who had been stationed in Italy yearned for the pizza they had eaten during the war.

Two other herbs are used in the same ways as common oregano but have different properties. Mexican oregano is a plant in the verbena family that has an even stronger flavor, while marjoram is a closely related plant that lacks oregano's essential oil and has a different, gentler "mouth feel."