A Chef Settles the Debate: Do Bay Leaves Even Do Anything?

Adding a bay leaf to your chicken soup may seem like a no-brainer but does that little leaf really make a difference? Ask your friends who cook occasionally and most will say no, they omit them all the time. Ask professional chefs and avid home cooks, and the answer is completely different. But opinion is one thing, an actual taste test is another.

As the former test kitchen manager for a magazine and now full-time recipe developer, I did what I know best, I made a recipe and did a side-by-side blind tasting. I made Chef John’s Homemade Chicken Stock with and without a bay leaf and then tasted the broth alongside other people. The difference was noticeable but not profound. The stock with the bay leaf had a slightly more herbal flavor and nuanced taste but it wasn’t enough to make me think the bay leaf was crucial. 

But was my side-by-side test enough? I didn’t think so. My bay leaf was more than a year old and wasn’t very big. Another chef agreed. “I think bay leaves are just underused or misused. They need to be toasted and they need to be used bountifully. Dried bay has very little impact whereas California fresh bay leaves should be used carefully,” says Stephen Coggio, former farmer at The French Laundry garden and now Executive Chef at Cloud 9 Caterers in Burlington, Vt.  

So I went back to the kitchen and made the chicken stock again. Twice. In one I used a fresh bay leaf and in the other, I used three dried bay leaves.

Does a Bay Leaf Really Make a Difference When Added to Recipes?

My goodness was the difference between the first and second tasting intense. The original stock with no bay leaf was okay but we all thought it was a bit flat. The stock with one dried bay leaf tasted better with a touch more herbal depth but not overly so. The stock with three dried bay leaves tasted even more herbal with a grassy-like quality and while some liked it, others (including me) said the bay leaf flavor was too much. But the clear winner was the stock made with a fresh bay leaf. Instead of the flavor being overpowering, the bay leaf gave the stock an almost delicate quality that we all knew would translate well to be the best for soups, stews, and sauces.  

“Bay leaves are the backbone of many recipes. They are the supporting player in the herb world and they’re often overlooked but they add a subtle layer of flavor goodness in many recipes that can’t be replicated,” says Danielle Bennett, aka Diva Q, chef and World Champion Pitmaster based in Florida who is dedicated to making the best rubs and sauces for barbecue. 

The Bottom Line

What we found is not shocking but the quality of your ingredient matters. Fresh bay leaves and newer dried bay leaves (i.e. not the ones that have been in your cabinet for five years) give the best flavor while old dried bay leaves have lost their strength. 

Now I know why my friends who don’t cook very often think bay leaves don’t matter versus the chefs who definitely do. They’re using different bay leaves.

Check the date on your bay leaf jar. If there isn’t a date or you don’t remember when you got them, it might be time to refresh your stash. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how the new bay leaf shines and while you’re at it, check your other spices too.