How to Dry Herbs

How to Dry Herbs

Have you ever tasted the difference between homemade and store-bought dried herbs?  If you have, you know much better the “home grown” dried herbs are!  It’s totally worth it to pluck your herb harvest and get them dried.

Store-bought herbs are almost bland in comparison.  Sure, I’ll use them in a pinch, but if I can cut and dry my own, I’m going to every chance I get!

5 easy ways you can dry herbs

If you want to dry herbs, here are five easy ways to get started.  Just choose your favorite and get to drying!

Before you get started, you need to harvest your herbs. During the height of growing season, I usually snip of the entire stem to encourage the plant to keep producing.  Then, I slide my thumb and pointer finger along the stem, forcing the leaves into a bowl.

Give them a good rinse and spin dry in a salad spinner or pat dry with a paper towel.  You need to give them a rinse, but want to make sure they aren’t wet when you begin the drying process.

Now pick your method…

Dehydrating Herbs

If you’re using a dehydrator, I go into more details at Harvesting and Drying Herbs from the Garden, but it’s pretty dang simple to dry herbs that way!  I use the lowest possible setting for 1-4 hours, checking after each hour to see if they are dried.

How to Dry Herbs In the Oven

The oven method for drying herbs is simple!  You only need a cookie sheet and whatever herbs your little heart desires.  Spread your herbs out over the cookie sheet {they can overlap}. Turn your oven onto the lowest possible temp and place the cookie sheet in the oven for 2-3 hours.

Hanging Herbs for Drying

I’d only recommend this method if you like in a dry climate because sometimes the bundles retain too much moisture and you get mold before they are dry (yuck!).  Having said that, this is simple.  Clip the stems and bundle them with a rubber band or twine, then hang them upside down in a place that is warm and dry.

Drying Herbs In the Microwave

Place a single layer of herbs on a paper towel on a microwave-safe plate. Cover with another paper towel. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Check to see if herbs are dry. If not, return them to the microwave for 30-second intervals until herbs are dry {this can take up to 10 minutes, depending on the herb!}.

Air Dry

In the summer months, I love to use the sun and hot weather.  I lay them out flat on a cookie sheet, or even my dehydrator racks, and set them outside to dry.  I like this method because they dry pretty slowly, which I think retains their flavor better {but that might be all in my head!}.

 

How to Prep Dried Herbs?

Now what do you do with all those dried herbs? Personally , I prefer to pull out my coffee grinder and pulse small batches them.  If you are drying multiple types of herbs, you want to make sure that in between each type of herb, you clean your coffee grinder, just so that the flavors don’t co-mingle.

Then I put the dried and lightly pulsed herbs into small mason jars and then store them in the pantry or cupboard.  They will store for about a year, and the flavor is so much more intense than anything you can get in a store!

Do you grow and dry your herbs?  If so, what is your preferred method?

~Mavis