MaggieBB

Am wondering if any one here knows about drying things like parsley, basil or mints? am overcome with these over growing my spaces and can't bear to throw them away.

Tartan

I think most herbs are dried by hanging in bunches in a well ventilated area. I think I might go the ice cubes tray method myself. You chop up the fresh herbs and place them in the ice cube trays and fill with water. Once the cubes are frozen, you place them in a freezer bag in the freezer. You just drop a cube into soup or sauces when needed.

juneayerza

I've dried parsely in the microwave before. I throughly washed it and then blotted it as dry as possible. I picked the leaves off of the stems. I laid a double sheet of paper towels in the microwave and as close as I could, spread a single layer of the leaves over the paper towel. This is where you have to test yourself to be patient. Microwave 10 seconds at a time, check for dryness and repeat until completely dry but not burnt.

I think you could probably do this with the basil also since it is also a very thin leaf. I'm not sure with the mint, but since you have so much of it, I would experiment with it.

sparkys_mom

I wash and dry parsley and then process it - dry - through my Ninja until it is chopped very fine. Then I put it in a freezer bag and pop it in the freezer. When I need some, I just take the quantity I need from the bag.

I've never tried it with mint or basil but don't see why you couldn't. Actually, if I had excess basil I'd probably make pesto and freeze that. I buy pesto all the time at the grocery and don't use it fast enough so I put it in ice cube trays and freeze it.

sweet

My favorite tip is to wash the plant real well first, let dry, then harvest and process. Freeze some, dry some, enjoy it all!

Joset

dry upside down out of the sun but with good ventilation

ptquilts

I would process the basil with some olive oil and freeze. Because of the oil, it does not freeze solid, and you can scoop some out when you need it.

trolleystation

I pick my fresh herbs, remove stems and wash. Place in a heavy duty freezer bag and freeze. When frozen, I knead the bag until the frozen herb is in very small pieces. It is then ready for my recipes. Love the bright color s of them instead of the drab colors of the dried herbs. Very easily done.

Snooze2978

My sister told me of a way to use the microwave to dry your herbs. Wash them as usual, let dry, take off their stems, don't crush. Lay on a paper towel and nuke for 60 seconds. If not dry enough, continue at 15 seconds at a time till dry enough to suit you. Don't go more than 15 seconds at a time after the 1st 60 seconds as they could catch fire. Ask my sister how she knows...........:-) Once dry enough and they have cooled down enough, store them in a ziploc bag or container with lid. I've tried it and it worked for me. I also hang my basil upside down in bunches to ward off bugs. Seems they don't care for the smell of basil. I also put a bunch out into my garages to help with the spider problem.

alleyoop1

I grow a few herbs in pots on my deck. I pick them, wash them, then bundle them together in small batches and hang them from the knobs on my kitchen cabinets. When dry I remove the leaves, chop if necessary, and store in a clean, dry spice bottle for use in the winter. My favorites to grow are parsley and thyme, although I have done rosemary and mint too.