Drying of the herbs

Drying of the herbs is a technique used so as to get most of the freshness and also the taste out of the herbs. There are various methods for the drying of the herbs which can be used to achieve the best results.

Before starting off with the drying of the herbs, you should harvest the herbs in the early morning this is because they haven't yet started expending energy for the day and this makes them in just the perfect condition right before the flowering.

The first step involves the use of knife or scissors so as to cut off the large branches or the stems out of the plant itself. Each branch of the plant in use should be shaken gently so as to do away with any of the insects still lodging in the plant. Any damaged or diseased leaves should be immediately removed.

It is sometimes advised to wash the herbs before the drying process can be carried out so as to get rid of any of the dirt or debris allowing the insects and other harmful materials to live in the plant. However, if this is carried out the plant has to then be completely dried before it is put in contact with other plants for the drying procedure, because wetness can cause messy mold to build up very quickly.

All the branches are now collected into a bunch and then this is stored in a plain paper bag, which should have a few open wholes on the sides required for ventilation. The bag should be big enough so that the leaves do not touch the sides and it should then be hung in a warm and dry room upside down. This takes about a week or two depending entirely upon the moisture levels of the herbs. During this time a constant check on the molds should be given so as to take instant action if it prevails.

After the require time, the dried leaves are carefully removed taking care not to crush them, so as to attain the bets flavor and the stems are then discarded.