How to Dry Basil

Basil is a culinary herb that is widely used for enhancing flavor of different dishes and appetizers. Though nothing beats fresh basil leaves that are picked right off the plant for flavor, drying and preserving some basil leaves ensure a good supply through out the year.

Whether you have your own basil plant in your Garden or you buy it from the market, it is always better to have some extra basil preserved so that you can use it in future even when it’s not the growing season. Drying basil is the best way of preserving it. There are different ways in which you can dry these herbs. Following are some of the ways that you can try at home:

Instructions

Air drying

• Cut the stalks of basil and rinse them properly under cool water to ensure it’s clean from all the dirt particles and insects.
• Place them on flat paper towel to dry.
• Select an apt place in your home where you can hang the basil to dry. Basil can be dried anywhere be it your kitchen, a pantry, or even a basement storage area, where the atmosphere is relatively dry and also free from physical disturbances.
• Once dry, hold the stalks upside down such that the top points downwards and tie the base of the stalks together with a string, a thread or a rubber band.
• Hang the basil in the area that you have selected for drying. You will know the basil dry when it will turn brown and brittle. It takes nearly two to three weeks for basil to dry thoroughly. However the duration may vary depending upon the drying conditions.
• When the basil is dry, preserve it in an air-tight container. You can either store it in full leaves or crushed. However, storing the basil without crushing helps it retain some of the flavor for long.

Sun drying:

• Pick stems of basil and rinse them properly. Pat dry them with paper towel.
• Spread a clean bed sheet on an area that will receive full sun. Place big stones or other heavy weight substance at the corners of the bed sheet to weight down the edges.
• Pluck the basil leaves and spread them out on the bed sheet such that the ray of the sun hits each leaf.
• Make sure at regular intervals you move the leaves a bit so that they get more sun.
• Depending on the weather conditions, the leaves will take several days to dry thoroughly.

Apart from air drying and sun drying, you can also try drying basil in oven. It’s really simple. All you need to do is to pluck the basil leaves and place them in a roasting pan. Save energy by simply placing the leaves in the oven just after you have used the oven for cooking something at 350 degrees. Remove the dish from the oven, shut off the oven and then place the pan with basil leaves inside the oven as it cools down.
The remaining heat in the oven will be sufficient for basil to dry. Make sure to stir the leaves with a spatula every half hour to ensure the leaves do not stick to the pan and get properly dried up. You don’t require baking it. You simply need to use the remaining oven heat to dry it out.

Watch a video instruction on how to dry herbs

See also

How to Dry Basil

How to Dry Tomatoes

How to Dry Tomatoes

How to Dry Roses