{"id":7920,"date":"2013-11-01T08:30:31","date_gmt":"2013-11-01T08:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/greensideup.ie\/?p=7920"},"modified":"2019-03-14T15:24:09","modified_gmt":"2019-03-14T15:24:09","slug":"how-to-dry-h","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greensideup.ie\/how-to-dry-h\/","title":{"rendered":"Drying Herbs? Here’s how to air, oven & freeze them"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n\"Drying<\/a>Drying herbs, freezing or even using the ones we grow has been a topic of conversation with a few community garden groups recently and one I was reminded of again during a recent chat with Orla Rapple\u00a0when we were discussing the benefits of blogging and horticulture.<\/p>\n

Many of us grow herbs in pots outside the door or in herb beds or gardens, but how often do we harvest and store them for use over the winter months?<\/p>\n

With food waste very much on the agenda after the revelation that\u00a0Tesco sent 28,500 tonnes into landfill\u00a0<\/a>from their UK stores (not composted)\u00a0in the first six months of this year, now might be a great time to think about preserving our own herbs.<\/p>\n

There’s been many a year that I’ve regretted not collecting the leaves from my coriander (cilantro) before it went to seed or not drying the basil plants before they withered and died, yet preserving, drying or freezing herbs is a very simple exercise that will only take a short time to do.<\/p>\n

\"Drying<\/a>

Basil ‘gone to seed’<\/p><\/div>\n

How to dry herbs<\/strong><\/h1>\n

The best time to pick herbs for drying is early to mid summer when shoots are young and fresh. If they’re left until later in the year they may become tough and flower, which can alter their flavour. However,<\/em>\u00a0if you’ve left it late\u00a0(as we had in Callan this year with the basil), taste a leaf or two and see if you’re happy with the flavour. If you are, better to dry it than waste it!<\/p>\n

\"Drying<\/a>

Goresbridge Community Gardeners Collecting Herbs<\/p><\/div>\n

Here’s a few tips to help get the best flavours from preserved herbs:<\/p>\n