What is Cuban Oregano?

Last Updated on June 9, 2021 by Sindhu

Cuban oregano, Coleus amboinicus is a succulent herb that belongs to the same family as mint, thyme, and rosemary. It is also known as Mexican mint, Indian borage, or Spanish thyme.

Although it has oregano in its name, it is completely different from the oregano (Mediterranean) that we find on the shelves of American supermarkets.

Cuban oregano origin?

Cuban oregano can be found in eastern Africa and coastal India for more than centuries. But the exact origin is still ambiguous. But many believe that it has traveled from eastern Africa to coastal India, and then to Europe. Then it traveled from Spain to the Americas, hence the name Spanish thyme.

Benefits of Cuban oregano

All the parts of the plant like leaves, bark, seeds, flowers, and root are used in traditional medicines.
In Ayurveda and folk medicine, the leaves are mainly used to treat respiratory illnesses such as sore throat, cold, cough, flu, asthma. The steam from these leaves gives instant relief from chest congestion.

As a kid, I always remember chewing a fresh leaf of Cuban oregano with a pinch of rock salt. It is one of my grandmother’s favorite home remedies for cold or cough.

The leaves can also be steeped into a tea or made into a soup as it is both refreshing and aids in better digestion.

Cuban oregano also acts as a good mouth wash. Simply chewing a leaf or two will help in maintaining dental hygiene and prevent other oral problems.

It is also used to treat diabetic patients as it effectively regulates blood sugar levels. Hence it also helps in managing other side effects of diabetes.

Cuban oregano leaves are also used in treating some scalp-related and hair-related problems like premature graying and dandruff.

Cuban oregano vs Oregano

Even though both Oregano and Cuban oregano belongs to the same family, they are from different species.
The leaves of regular oregano are small and regular in thickness, somewhat similar to marjoram. Whereas Cuban oregano has big, thick, and fuzzy leaves which look more like succulents.

Culinary uses of Cuban oregano

As the name suggests, it is most often used in Cuban cuisine, African cuisine, and Indian cuisine. It is used in both fresh form and dried form. Being a tropical herb, it is mostly used to marinate meats, stuff the poultry, and also to flavor a few other vegetable dishes.

Fresh leaves have the maximum flavor and they are often made into fritters by dipping into batter and deep frying.

They can also be made into a fresh pesto or chopped and added to salsa.

Substitute for Cuban oregano

Cuban oregano has a more pungent and musky aroma with lemony tones and hence it’s mostly used in Caribbean dishes. Regular oregano makes a very good substitute as they both smell similar, but the quantity used should be a little more than required to balance the strong flavor.

1 teaspoon of dried Cuban oregano can be substituted with 1 teaspoon dried oregano.

Marjoram also belongs to the same family as Cuban oregano and makes a good replacement because of their similar flavor profile.

1 teaspoon dried Cuban oregano can be substituted with 1 teaspoon dried marjoram.

Other names

Cuban oregano is known by various names depending on the country in which it is used.
Common English names include Mexican mint, Indian borage, Spanish thyme, French thyme, soup mint, country borage, broad leaf thyme.
Also known as Karpooravalli, Omavalli, Ajwain leaves, doddapatre, kapparillaku.