Know2eat

Dried basil

Ocimum basilicum

What dried basil has been studied for

1 association assessed — none with dependable human evidence behind them yet. Strongest first.

  • 1 Insufficient
3 things to know first — allergies, interactions and intake limits

About dried basil

Basil leaf air-dried and crumbled. Drying removes the water and most of the volatile aroma that defines fresh basil, leaving a hay-like flavour and a much more concentrated leaf by weight — which is why the USDA figures per 100 g look nothing like those for the fresh herb.

Also known as dried basil, basil leaves dried, sweet basil dried

Antioxidant & Oxidative Stress

The evidence in depth

Best supported: Insufficient

What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Oxidative stress markers

Antioxidant & Oxidative Stress
Insufficient evidence

Dried basil is dense in rosmarinic acid by weight and scores well in laboratory antioxidant assays. No human trial has tested dried basil against oxidative stress markers, and the portions involved are a fraction of a gram.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

No source is attached to this association yet, so it is rated insufficient by default. It is listed because people commonly ask about it — not because there is evidence for it.

Ask about Dried basil

Ask about Dried basil

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

AI explanations are not switched on for this site, so there is nothing to ask here. Everything above is read straight from the database and does not need them.

Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories233 kcal12%
Protein23 g46%
Total fat4.07 g5%
Carbohydrate47.8 g17%
Fibre37.7 g135%
Total sugars1.71 g—
Water10.3 g—
Fats
Saturated fat2.16 g11%
Monounsaturated fat1.24 g—
Polyunsaturated fat0.498 g—
Cholesterol0 mg0%
ALA (omega-3)0.296 g—
EPA (omega-3)0 g—
DHA (omega-3)0 g—
DPA (omega-3)0 g—
Linoleic acid (omega-6)0.199 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A37 µg4%
Vitamin C0.8 mg1%
Vitamin D0 µg0%
Vitamin E10.7 mg71%
Vitamin K1715 µg1429%
Thiamin (B1)0.08 mg7%
Riboflavin (B2)1.2 mg92%
Niacin (B3)4.9 mg31%
Pantothenic acid (B5)0.838 mg17%
Vitamin B61.34 mg79%
Folate310 µg78%
Vitamin B120 µg0%
Choline54.9 mg10%
Minerals
Calcium2240 mg172%
Iron89.8 mg499%
Magnesium711 mg169%
Phosphorus274 mg22%
Potassium2630 mg56%
Sodium76 mg3%
Zinc7.1 mg65%
Copper2.1 mg233%
Manganese9.8 mg426%
Selenium3 µg5%
Other measured compounds
Beta-carotene378 µg—
Alpha-carotene113 µg—
Lycopene393 µg—
Lutein + zeaxanthin1150 µg—
Caffeine0 mg—
Ash14.8 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Spices, basil, dried (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 171317).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

  • driedChanges volatile aroma compounds and polyphenol density

    Drying destroys most of the volatile compounds that make fresh basil smell like basil, while concentrating the non-volatile polyphenols per gram. The usual substitution is about a third as much dried as fresh, and dried basil belongs in a long-simmered sauce rather than on top of a caprese.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Worth knowing

    Dried herbs and spices carry a real Salmonella risk

    Dried leaf herbs are a documented vehicle for Salmonella and other pathogens, because drying does not kill bacteria and the product is often added to food after cooking. Recalls of dried basil and oregano recur, and adding dried herbs to a dish that will be heated is safer than sprinkling them over a finished salad.

  • Worth knowing

    Dried herb adulteration

    Testing programmes have repeatedly found dried basil and oregano bulked out with olive, myrtle or other cheap leaves, sometimes at high proportions. It is a fraud problem rather than a toxicity one, but it means the jar may not be what the label says.

  • Worth knowing

    Estragole is concentrated by drying

    Basil contains estragole, which is genotoxic in rodents at high doses and limited in flavourings by European regulators. Removing water concentrates it by weight, though the amounts anyone eats remain very small.