From: altar@beaufort.sfu.ca (Ted Wayn Altar)
Subject: Drying Your Own Herbs
Organization: Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C., Canada
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 17:21:17 GMT

SOME NOTES OF DRYING YOUR OWN HERBS

One good way to not only save save money, but to have a
marvelously tasting herb, much stronger tasting than seemingly
what one can buy, is to grow and dry your own herbs.

Given how expensive a little glass bottle of these things cost,
growing your own is well worth the little time it requires.
Starting with maybe a parsley bed and then branching out is a
good way to begin.

Most herbs you can simply eat as they grow.  For instance, basil
can be harvested fresh by pinching off single leaves or sprigs as
needed when the plant is sufficiently large.

Now, drying of herbs is really far, far easier than drying
vegetables or fruits.

In general, if you have a warm, dry, shady location then air
drying is most convenient.  My references say that it is best to
keep out of direct sunlight, especially these tender-leaf herbs
(sweet basil, tarragon and mints) otherwise both their colour and
their flavour is diminished.  Also, paradoxically it seems to me,
I've read that drying out of the sun helps to prevent mold.
Thicker, tougher herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme and parsley),
however, can be partially dried in the sun and finished in a
lukewarm oven.

For drying, harvesting on a sunny morning prior to flowering is
best.  You might first spray with water the previous day so as to
clean off dust and dirt from the leaves.  On harvest day, cut the
plant as early as possible (wait till the morning dew has dried,
if need be).  With respect to basil, leave a node with at least 2
shoots to ensure further growth of the plant as it will continue
to grow.   Cut the top 4 or 5 inches and then simply bundle these
cut stems together at the bottom and tie with a string for
hanging.  Alternatively, if you prefer, you can spread them
thinly on a screen.  Again, best to keep in a dark, warm, airy
place and to check them periodically.  They are usually ready in
a few days.  Labelling helps if you are drying more than one kind
of herb as things look very different when they are dried.  ;-)

An alternative method, one which I haven't tried but one that
might be necessary if dust and fly droppings should be a problem,
is to simply get small bunches (what you can hold easily in one
hand) and place them upside down into paper bags.  In this way
the herbs can be free to hang within the bag.  With the herbs
hanging upside down in that manner, simply tie the herbs together
by tying the outside of the bag.  The idea is to help ensure that
the herbs don't contact the sides of the paper bag (the paper can
absorb oils from the herbs).  Also, so I read, this helps to
minimize daily changes of humility affecting the herbs.  One
suggestion was to place the bags on a wooden clothes dryer or on
coat hangers in a closet.  It may, however, take 2 weeks for the
leaves to shrivel by this method and mould can be more of a
problem.

When drying is complete the leaves should crumble easily. Once
the herbs are off the stems, test them to see if they will break
up readily by crushing through a coarse strainer.  It they do
not, then place on a cookie sheet in a cool oven (100 F) until
they are chip dry.  Don't try to force herbs to break up if they
are still flabby (you'll just end up with some broken stems mixed
up with your herbs).  Ideally, they should fall off the stems
easily without a general breaking up of the stems

Simply strip the leaves from the stems and pack them in air-tight
containers.  If you are using transparent glass containers, then
store them in a dark cupboard of their own (to retain their
colour), otherwise use light-proof containers.  Glass is
preferable to plastic and paper bags are never to be used for
storage.  A cool cupboard, away from the stove is best.

Great debate and controversy centers around whether or not whole
leaves or large flakes is the best way to store herbs in bottles.
This would entail delaying crushing/grounding (in one's hand or
in a electric spice grinder) until needed at a meal.  You might
want to do this, but home-grown herbs are so superior in flavour
and strength that such minor considerations may not be worth the
effort.  Mortar and pestle or rubbing over a coarse screen or
using one of those small electric spice grinders are the usual
methods for crushing.  Herbs will last in the cupboard for at
least 2 years.

Happy drying,

                                  ted .


Xref: sparky rec.food.veg:10683 rec.food.cooking:20951