I grow Chives, Basil, and Oregeno in my garden and i’m not going to use them all. I was wondering what the best way is to dry, then bottle them. Any help and/or tips are greatly appreciated.
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You can buy a food dehydrator . There are many available at reasonable prices. Just make sure it’s at least 700 watts and UL Listed. I paid about $59 for mine over 10 years ago and it works great and is energy wise. Unless Ronco has changed they just suck up the electric. You don’t have to pay a fortune I think mine is American Harvest
Links to view
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A food dehydrator.
it’s not terribly complicated. just leave them on the counter covered with a paper towel to dry out. depending on how fresh they are it can take as long as a couple of weeks. i grow basil and cilantro and occasionally i’ll dry out parsley from the store if i don’t want it to go to waste.
just don’t heat it in the oven because the heat changes the taste of the herbs. it’ll go faster if you can leave them outside. just make sure you have a secure place that bugs can’t get to.
I grow mint, oregano, basil, parsley, chives, thyme, sage and rosemary. Wash them and then hang them from a pole (or rafter or whatever) in a room with good air circulation. It takes a couple of weeks for them to dry. Then strip the leaves from the stalks but do not crush them. Seal them in a clean jar. (I save old mayonnaise or spaghetti sauce jars) Crush them when you are ready to use them. This releases the essential oils, flavor and aroma. I do not dry chives, I just chop them up and freeze them.