How to Use Your Dehydrator to Preserve Herbs
Preserving your herbs by drying them in a dehydrator is a great way to have fresh herbs to cook with throughout the year. It is also an economical way to use herbs- growing your own is much cheaper than paying grocery store prices.
To prepare your herbs for dehydration you will need to first rinse them. Be sure to only rinse the leaves and flowers and not the seeds. After rinsing, gently shake them to remove any excess water and lay them out to air dry for a little while.
Drying your herbs in a dehydrator is fast and easy and you will end up with high quality dried herbs because you are able to control the temperature and air circulation of the dehydrator. Set the dehydrator’s thermostat to 95 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the herbs on the dehydrator trays in a single layer for about 1 to 4 hours. When you are able to break the stems when bending them and crumbling the leaves, your herbs are dry.
Sturdy herbs like parsley, sage and thyme can be dried by tying them into small bundles and hanging them to air dry. Herbs with tender leaves like mint, oregano, basil and tarragon on the other need to dry quickly otherwise they will mold, so you should use a dehydrator for these herbs.
You can also dry sage, mint and bay leaves separately by removing them from the stems before placing them in the dehydrator.
Tips and Hints:
* Your dried herbs will need to be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. You can either store dried leaves as is or crumpled.
* When using your dried herbs in a recipe, remember that dried herbs are about 3 to 4 times more potent than fresh herbs- so you will need to compensate for this if the recipe calls for the use of fresh herbs.
* When using a dehydrator to dry your herbs only dry one type of herb at a time to preserve the flavor.
* By grinding up your herbs and mixing them with coarse salt you can make a lovely present for someone.
* Herbs such as lavender, mint, sage and lemongrass can be ground up and mixed with bath salts for a fragrant bath.
* You can also make your own herbal tea by mixing dried chamomile, mint or lavender with tealeaves.
* Use your dried herbs to make potpourri bags as gifts or to hang in your closet.
* Start your own herb garden with herbs that you like to use often so that you can harvest and dry your herbs anytime you like.
* It is not recommended that you dry your herbs in the stove as this method will rob the herbs of their natural oils and compromise the flavor.
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