24 things you didn't know about zaatar

posted on: Nov 8, 2015

You know that an Arab household with no zaatar is just flat out wrong. Knowing that thyme is a vital ingredient to making zaatar, here’s a list of things you may or may not have known about zaatar:

1. Zaatar can refer to either just the plant – thyme in English – or the best spice mix ever made on earth

2. Many believe the name “Thymus” comes from the Greek word Thumus which means courage
3. Thyme is an evergreen shrub of the Lamiaceae (mint) family
4. In ancient Egypt, thyme was used for the process of mummification
5. Whereas, ancient Greeks burned thyme to freshen their temples
6. In ancient times, young  women wore a corsage of blossoming thyme to signal their availability for romance
7. Oils extracted from the leaves contain: Thymol

8. Thymol is an active ingredient in Listerine mouthwash
9. The oils are also used in the chemical industry to make hand sanitizer & perfumes
10. Also used in times of war as recently as World War I to treat battle wounds
11.Thyme can be used to treat bronchitis & fungal infections
12. Thyme can survive for more than 2 years in the wild
13. There are around 350 species of thyme that are native to Europe, Asia & Africa
14. Romans used thyme to treat depression
15. Zaatar is popular in Armenia, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia & Turkey
16. The belief that zaatar alerts the mind [remember those zaatar sandwiches back during school days?] … well that’s a myth fabricated during the Lebanese Civil War to encourage eating of the condiment
17. Thyme is an excellent source of Vitamin C
18. It can fight the bacteria known to cause skin acne
19. During the medieval times, knights wore scarves embroidered with thyme as a symbol of courage
20. Fairies are said to love thyme. In both France & England, people created a bed of thyme to attract fairies
21.The king of fairies in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” says, “I know a bank where the wild thyme blows”, referring to the bed of thyme where the fairy queen sleeps
22. A 17th century recipe used thyme as one of the main ingredients to enable people to see fairies
23. Thyme was once used on bandages to prevent infection
24. Aids in digestion when made into a tea

Source: stepfeed.com