Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Dry Fresh Herbs in the Oven

Dry Fresh Herbs in the Oven 

Pick herbs very early in the morning.  Rinse and pat dry. Remove any damaged, brown or wilted  leaves. Cut a piece of parchment paper the size of your baking sheet and use it to line the baking sheet. Arrange herbs on the baking sheet, leaving room between sprigs. Place in the oven based on methods listed. 

For a gas oven with an interior pilot light, simply place the herbs in the oven, shut the door and leave overnight. Even though the oven is off they will be perfectly dry in the morning. 

For a convection oven, set to 170 degrees. Place herbs in the oven for 20 minutes, then turn over for an additional 20 minutes. Check for dryness and if not turn and bake an additional 20 minutes. 

For a regular oven, set to 170 degrees. Place herbs in the oven and prop the door open to allow for air circulation for 20 minutes. Turn and cook an additional 20 minutes. Repeat the process every 20 minutes until dried. Will take approximately 2 hours in total. 

Once dry strip the leaves by running your fingers down the stems. They should pull right off. Crumble between your fingers. It should turn to powder, they're done. If herbs are still a little soft then they will need more drying time. 

Once completely dry stor in mason jars, leaving the lid off for the first day or two to keep them exposed to air a little longer. 

Notes:

*  If the herbs are still a bit wet when placed in the oven they will need longer to dry 
*  Some herbs have more oil than other and will take longer to dry


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