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Don’t have any Italian seasoning on hand while you’re making a recipe? Here’s the best Italian seasoning substitute to use in cooking.

Italian seasoning substitute
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Making a recipe that calls for Italian seasoning and don’t have it? Italian seasoning is a popular Mediterranean herb blend. It’s actually not Italian at all, despite the name! Italian seasoning is a spice blend created as a convenience for cooks to quickly add Mediterranean flair to dishes. Most mixes you’ll find at the grocery have oregano, basil, and thyme, but there’s lots of variation. Don’t have time to pick up more at the store? Here’s the best Italian seasoning substitute.

Best Italian seasoning substitute

1. Make your own homemade Italian seasoning.

The best Italian seasoning substitute? Homemade! It’s very easy to make Italian seasoning at home. Here’s what to mix together to make 3 tablespoons Italian seasoning.

  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 2 teaspoons dried thyme (not ground)
  • 1 teaspoon dried sage
  • ½ teaspoon dried rosemary

2. Dried oregano and basil.

Another great Italian seasoning substitute? A combination of oregano and basil! These dried herbs have the strongest flavor profile in Italian seasoning. If you have dried thyme, you can throw in a little of that as well. Here are a few ideas:

  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning = ½ teaspoon dried oregano and ½ teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning = ½ teaspoon dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon each dried basil and thyme

3. Herbes de Provence.

Here’s a fun trick! The herb blend Herbes de Provence Seasoning has a lot of similar seasonings to Italian seasoning. Of course, it’s a little more niche than Italian seasoning so it’s possible you might not have it on hand. But if you do: it works in a pinch!

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Italian Seasoning Substitute

Italian seasoning
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Don’t have any Italian seasoning on hand while you’re making a recipe? Here’s the best Italian seasoning substitute to use in cooking.

  • Author: Sonja Overhiser
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: About 7 tablespoons 1x
  • Category: Spices
  • Method: Spice Blend
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 tablespoons dried oregano
  • 2 tablespoons dried basil
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme (not ground)
  • 1 tablespoon dried sage
  • 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

Instructions

  1. Whisk the ingredients together in a small bowl. Transfer to an airtight container or jar. Store for 6 months to 1 year in a cool, dry place.

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About the authors

Alex & Sonja

Hi! We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser, authors of the acclaimed cookbooks A Couple Cooks and Pretty Simple Cooking—and a real life couple who cooks together. We founded the A Couple Cooks website in 2010 to share seasonal recipes and the joy of home cooking. Now, we’ve got over 3,000 well-tested recipes, including Mediterranean diet, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, smoothies, cocktails, and more!

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2 Comments

  1. George Moy says:

    The ingredients you have for Italian seasoning is close to the one I bought from family dollar for only $1 dollars,except it has parsley and garlic,it doesn’t have sage,so I don’t know if that’s good or not, but I love the flavor of the seasoning in a meatloaf and the aroma when you cook a meatloaf, it makes your meat smell like a expensive piece of beef,like prime rib.

  2. Nancy Lynn Hansen says:

    Made this with the mayonnaise and it was the most tender chicken breast I’ve made in a long time. Will always do it this way from now on.