How to Use Fines Herbes and Bonnes Herbes in French Cooking
By Red Stick Spice Company | Published: 2026-11-03
Category: How-to Guides
Learn the difference between fines herbes and Bonnes Herbes, and get a step-by-step method for using each French herb blend in eggs, soups, and roasts.
Quick answer
Use fines herbes when you want a delicate, salt-free herbal finish for eggs, potatoes, or fish. Reach for Bonnes Herbes when a dish needs a peppery backbone, such as soups, stews, or braises.
Why the two blends behave differently
Fines Herbes is a classic French blend of chervil, parsley, chives, and tarragon, hand-blended in house at Red Stick Spice. It contains no salt, so you control the seasoning. Bonnes Herbes starts with tarragon, chervil, basil, dill, and chives, then adds white pepper. That pepper gives it a warmth and depth that stands up to longer cooking.
Because fines herbes is salt-free, it will not tighten or dry a dish the way a salted blend can. Bonnes Herbes brings its own gentle heat, so taste before adding extra black pepper.
When to choose each blend
Choose fines herbes for quick-cooking eggs, steamed potatoes, or a light butter sauce where you want the herbs to stay green and fresh. Choose Bonnes Herbes for soups, stews, and braises where the white pepper can meld with the liquid and the herbs can simmer without turning bitter.
Neither blend is a substitute for salt. If you are used to seasoned salt blends, start with a small amount and add salt separately.
Step-by-step: using fines herbes and Bonnes Herbes
- Start with the right blend for the dish: For eggs, potatoes, or fish, measure fines herbes. For soups, stews, or braises, measure Bonnes Herbes. A common mistake is using Bonnes Herbes in a delicate egg dish, where the white pepper can overpower the eggs. Match the blend to the cooking time: short for fines herbes, long for Bonnes Herbes.
- Add fines herbes at the end of cooking: Stir fines herbes into scrambled eggs, folded omelets, or steamed potatoes during the last minute of cooking. Off heat is even better. Checkpoint: taste before adding salt, because the blend is salt-free. Late addition keeps the herbs fresh and lets you control salt.
- Bloom Bonnes Herbes in fat or liquid: For soups and braises, add Bonnes Herbes early so the white pepper and herbs can infuse. Sauté it briefly in butter or oil before adding liquid, or stir it into simmering broth. A common mistake is adding it only at the end, which leaves the pepper raw and sharp. Give Bonnes Herbes at least 10 minutes of simmering to soften the pepper.
- Season in layers, then adjust: Start with a small amount, taste, and add more. For a roast chicken with red-skinned potatoes, sprinkle Bonnes Herbes on both before roasting, then finish with fines herbes on the potatoes if you want a fresh herbal note. Checkpoint: do not add salt until you have tasted the dish with the blend. Layer the blends for complexity, but always taste before salting.
Product facts
- Fines Herbes - Salt Free: Fines Herbes is salt-free and combines chervil, parsley, chives, and tarragon. You can season eggs or potatoes generously without oversalting, and the green herbs stay bright in quick dishes.
Fines Herbes - Salt Free - Bonnes Herbes: Bonnes Herbes includes white pepper along with tarragon, chervil, basil, dill, and chives. The pepper adds gentle heat that holds up in soups and braises, so you may not need extra black pepper.
Bonnes Herbes
