Drying Herbs

A Brief Rundown

• Morning harvesting minimizes wilting, although any time of day will work.

• After harvest I rinse the herbs off with water to rid of any dust or dirt.

• After harvest, there are multiple ways to dry herbs and store them for later use. The two that I have done successfully has been using a paper bag and the dehydrator. While the dehydrator might be faster, I prefer the paper bag.

The Paper Bag Method

The old-fashioned way is to put an herb bundle in a paper bag and hang it upside down in a warm, dry place indoors. The bag keeps both dust and sunlight away from the herbs. Light deteriorates herbs quickly.

After I cut and put them in a paper bag, I will mark the bag because if you do a bunch of herbs at one time, it is easier to mark the bags than try and sort through them.

Drying usually takes about a week. You will know when they are dry enough because the leaves will crumble. Then I put them in a bowl and strip the leaves from the stems. At the end of each batch I will put them in a jar with a lid. This is done when I have a lot of time on my hands usually watching baseball or football.

Storing your fresh dried herbs in jars with lids in the cupboard, fridge or even the freezer will keep them fresh for up to a year.