Comments on: Quick-drying fresh herbs

By: Fran's Mom

Fran's Mom — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 20:00:33 +0000

Hi…have been enjoying your blog for a while now, having been introduced to it by Fran. Sorry, I’m just getting around to reading the late June, early July entries, so I’m a little late weighing in. Have you tried drying herbs in your microwave? I have never had success air drying herbs (they tend to mildew), but am very pleased with the results of nuking them, and the fragrance is wonderful. Oregano, dill, mint, basil, thyme take only a few minutes. I usually stem them, and put them in a single layer on a double sheet of paper towels, and cover them with the same. I microwave them on full power for a minute or two (it’s easy to add another few seconds if needed). They come out beautifully dry and with a lot of color. I pack them in glass jars and keep them in the freezer. Purists may protest, but I really think they come out just fine.

By: Mrs B

Mrs B — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:30:15 +0000

My new favorite way to dry herbs is in the car. I place them in a pan (or a brown bag) and put them in the back window on a hot day. The sun and the heat of the car works magic. I’ve also used this method for sun-drying tomatoes, which took 2 days.

By: pam

pam — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 10:15:14 +0000

Oregano is definitely the bully of my herb bed. Yesterday I harvested my first batch of basil, and now have 3 jars of pesto in the fridge.

By: tigress

tigress — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:24:26 +0000

hi marisa,

this is great to see this as i am reading this from turkey – here for a friends wedding – and i have discovered that they sprinkle dried oregano on everything – like we do pepper. and it is delicious on things we have never even thought of!

By: Meryl

Meryl — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:02:42 +0000

Love this idea! (I have both a ton of oregano and a gas stove, so!)

By: Sylvie, Rappahannock Cook & Kitchen Gardener

Sylvie, Rappahannock Cook & Kitchen Gardener — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:50:56 +0000

I put fresh herbs like thyme, rosemary, oregano, celery seed head, dill seed head, fennel seed head, coriander etc in a paper bag to protect them from dust and just leave them just about anywhere to dry. Only takes a few days, if the bags get bumped, the leaf just fall in the bag. I don’t heat up my kitchen (which I really dislike doing in summer if I don’t have to, and use neither gas nor electricity. This method does not work for fleshy herbs like basil, but then I don’t dry basil, I pesto it and then jar it/freeze it.

Granted the oven method would make the whole house smell very nice, wouldn’t it?

By: albert

albert — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 06:28:56 +0000

Alton Brown’s box fan + air filter method looks quite interesting, but takes more effort than the overnight oven method. Gonna give this a try.