The leaf of the coriander plant, with a bright, citrus-and-soap aroma that comes from a group of aldehydes found in almost no other kitchen herb.
What it does in a recipe: A sharp, cooling finish that cuts through chilli heat and fat - it is a top note, added at the end and never cooked. Pick the swap that covers that job - the ratios below are written so you can act on them without doing any arithmetic.
Also called: Coriander leaf, Chinese parsley, Dhania
Culantro is a different plant but produces the same family of aldehydes at higher concentration, which is why Caribbean and Southeast Asian cooks treat the two as one ingredient.
MethodShred the long leaves finely. Unlike cilantro, culantro holds its flavour through simmering, so it can go in earlier.
Trade-offStronger and slightly more bitter, so use about half. The closest thing to a true cilantro substitute there is.
Purely a visual and textural stand-in. The two herbs look almost identical and taste nothing alike, so this replaces the green flecks and not the flavour.
Trade-offIn a curry or salsa the loss is significant - cilantro is often the dish's defining top note. Consider adding a squeeze of lime to recover some brightness.
Raw / no-cookCookingVeganVegetarianGluten-freeDairy-freeEgg-freeNut-freeSoy-free
Worth knowing
Cilantro stems carry more flavour than the leaves and hold up better in cooking. Save the leaves for the finish and put the chopped stems in with the aromatics.
At a glance
Fresh cilantro in summary
Fresh cilantro at a glance: category, its job in a recipe, the diets it suits, the diets its substitutes can satisfy, and how many substitutes there are.
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro = 1 1/2 tsp chopped culantro. Culantro is a different plant but produces the same family of aldehydes at higher concentration, which is why Caribbean and Southeast Asian cooks treat the two as one ingredient. Stronger and slightly more bitter, so use about half. The closest thing to a true cilantro substitute there is.
Can I use thai basil instead of fresh cilantro?
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro = 1 tbsp chopped Thai basil. It does not taste of cilantro, but it fills the same structural role - a raw, aromatic green finish that stands up to chilli, fish sauce and lime. Sweet and aniseed-scented rather than citrusy. Convincing in Vietnamese and Thai dishes, wrong in salsa or a taco.
Can I use fresh mint and flat-leaf parsley instead of fresh cilantro?
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro = 2 tsp chopped parsley + 1 tsp chopped mint. Parsley supplies the grassy body and the colour, mint supplies the cooling lift. Together they approximate cilantro's function, not its flavour. The dish will read as fresh and green but the characteristic citrus-soap note is simply absent. Anyone expecting cilantro will notice.
Can I use fresh parsley alone instead of fresh cilantro?
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro = 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley. Purely a visual and textural stand-in. The two herbs look almost identical and taste nothing alike, so this replaces the green flecks and not the flavour. In a curry or salsa the loss is significant - cilantro is often the dish's defining top note. Consider adding a squeeze of lime to recover some brightness.
Cooking around an allergy? Diet tags here describe the ingredient itself, not any particular brand. Processed products change formulation without notice and shared production lines are common, so read the label on everything you use. A severe allergy is a medical matter - confirm with the manufacturer or your clinician rather than relying on a substitution chart.