Drying Herbs

I've been growing herbs and wanted to preserve the herbs that I didn't use fresh. Drying them is easy, and once dry they keep well in a plastic sealed container. This is how to dry them:

Step one: pick your herbs. Not all herbs dry well- The herbs that I've found dry well are thyme, oregano, marjoram, and, surprisingly (it has a high water content) lemon balm. Rosemary also drys reasonably well, but stay away from sage. If you're not sure about a herb, try a little bit to test.

Step two: cut bunches of the herbs, and tie each type of herb in a separate bunch with a piece of string or elastic band. Make sure you cut stems, too, so you can fasten them by the stems.

Step three: place the bunches in paper bags, and tie the tops of the paper bags with string or elastic bands. Try not to place strong herbs alongside herbs with a weaker scent and flavour.

Step four: leave them for about a month. Less time will work for some herbs, but some need more, so check them every two weeks.

Step five: use them! You can easily grind them with a mortar and pestle, or sprinkle them in or over dishes, or you could even make tea or tea bags out of them.

Enjoy your naturally dried herbs! If you have a large crop of a herb that doesn't dry well, you could try freezing them- either in ice cubes, or just on a baking tray in the freezer.

Thanks for reading!