The aromatic and versatile leaves of the several aromatic Eurasian herbs or low shrubs, having small, white to lilac flowers grouped in head like clusters. The perennial herb is native to southern Europe and the Mediterranean. Garden thyme is the most common variety which is a bush with gray-green leaves giving off a pungent minty, light-lemon aroma. Sub-varieties include the narrow-leafed French thyme and broad-leafed English thyme.
While the other variety is called Wild Thyme or Creeping Thyme. It is a low, usually prostrate subshrub growing to 2 cm tall with creeping stems up to 10 cm long, with oval evergreen leaves. Of wild thyme the most famous sub-variety is a thick ground cover-is lemon thyme, an herb with a more pronounced lemon aroma than garden thyme.
Thyme is most widely used as a spice or seasoning in cooking. Whatever the variety, thyme is widely used in cooking to add flavor to vegetables, meat, poultry and fish dishes, soups and cream sauces. It's a basic herb of French cuisine. It is available fresh, dried and powdered and is one of the few herbs that retain most of the flavor even when dried.
