How to dry herbs easily

Before you buy any more herb or spice packets from the supermarket, have a look around your garden - you'd likely be surprised how many herbs you have growing and how easy it is to dry them yourself to use for cooking or teas during the year!

Herbs liked to be dried in a warm, dry spot, without being too clumped together, otherwise they go mouldy. Those gorgeous photos of bunches of hanging herbs is possible, but only if it's a small clump, otherwise it goes mouldy and you lose the colour in your herbs.

If you have a hot water cupboard, that is perfect! I prefer to dry them in a spot away from too much sun to preserve the colour and freshness of the herb.You'll notice that too much sun will wash out the colour of the herb and leave you with a brown leaf instead of green.

Harvest them on a sunny day when the dew has dried on the plant - you don't want to pick them when even slightly damp, as that increases the mould potential.

Lay them flat in a low cardboard box, not too layered, although a few layers is usually ok. I halved the layers in this photo to the right and placed them in 2 separate boxes.

Place them in your hot water cupboard and turn them every few days for a week, then leave them to dry fully.

When your herb is fully dried, usually crunchy, remove from the box and crumble well in your hands until you have your loose herb. Store them in a glass jar away from direct sun or light. They store well for up to 2 years like this.

And you never need to buy herbs in packets again! The smell and taste difference in fresh, dried homegrown herbs is incomparable!

We love to dry basil, rosemary, sage, parsley, thyme, oregano for cooking and plenty more for herb teas when they're not in season.

Enjoy ♥