How to Dry Basil and Other Herbs+ Recipes using basil
Basil is my favorite herb! I love using it in recipes. It has such great flavor! I am excited to share with you a really easy way to dry basil along with some fabulous recipes!
We have the smallest space ever for a garden so every year we plant the same things. Two pepper plants, two tomato plants and always basil. We also did jalapeno this year which I am glad because sadly for some reason our pepper and tomato plants might not produce anything this year. But our jalapeno plant and basil are doing great! Our basil was so close to dying but we finally got around to planting it from the little pot and look at it now! I don’t want to waste it so I have lots of plans for using it.
Here is a fabulous way to dry your own basil along with other herbs (like sage or thyme.) I found this idea in my recent issue of The Food Network Magazine.
How to Dry Basil (or other herbs)
1- Wash and dry the leaves, then remove the leaves from the stems.
2- Working in batches, arrange the leaves in a single layer on a paper plate or paper towel.
3- Microwave in 20-second intervals until the leaves are fully dry and brittle.
4- Crumble them into an airtight container and store up to three months.
So easy and fun! My boys loved being my assistants. I love that the basil has more fragrance than store-bought basil.
Recipes with Basil
Italian Pressed Picnic Sandwiches
Easy Basil Pesto from The Frugal Girls
Pesto, Mozzarella & Tomato Grilled Cheese
I also love just chopping up some fresh basil and adding it to pasta dishes. I also don’t have a post on it but I LOVE Caprese! Just layer sliced fresh mozzarella along with basil and tomatoes and top with salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
What are your favorite recipes using basil?
Thanks for the great post! I’m totally going to dry my leftover basil! Pinned!
You’re welcome! 🙂
Becky how did you get it to grow like that? Did you pinch it off constantly?
Hey, I’m not exactly sure! This was a few years back when we lived in a townhouse. I did pinch off the tops as it was about to flower. There were also sprinklers that went off pretty often so it got plenty of water.
How do you store them ? Freezer frig dark cabinet ?
It’s best to keep it in a dark dry place like a cabinet. And keep it in an airtight container.
This is so great! Pinning!
Thank you Amber!
i dont have oven..can i just airdry my leaves??
Do you mean microwave oven? A regular oven would work just on a low temperature. You could probably air dry it. I would google it.
Basil has so many health benefits. Thanks for sharing these amazing ideas.
Drying basil this way is quick, but it will lose a lot of the health benefits because of the heat in the microwave. I would recommend drying any herb out in the oven at it’s lowest setting or investing in a dehydrator. They will have more of the vitamins, minerals, etc. left over with these methods than nuking them in the microwave.
How did you get your basil plant to get so big? Mine is barely producing any.
I’m not an expert but pruning it helps. I suggest googling ways to help basil grow bigger because there are a lot of resources out there smarter than me. 🙂
Fantastic idea! I love basil and never thought of drying it
Thank you! 🙂
I had a large batch of basil this year and wanted to do something other than pesto ( I make more arugula pesto). After harvesting leaves w/o stems, I wash (rubbing each leaf to rid bugs if any). I put them in light batches in a spinner, spinning a few times each batch. I lay leaves on a towel spread out, pat dry as bests possible. I roll a batch of leaves together and cut into small pieces for drying. I lay the chopped basil spread out on a cookie sheet, making sure pieces are not clumped together. I leave the basil to air dry for three to four days. Several times a day I move the pieces around, carefully not to “clump”. On the second day I might put the sheet in an unused oven or just leave out for the 4 days. The longer the better. The pieces are crunchy, dark green (pretty, healthy color), and flavorful. Not the grey-green basil that comes from the store. I store the basil in used jars. I know this is a process, much like canning. But it is worth the time to get a great dried basil with fresh flavor. Good for gifts!!!
Thanks for sharing this! I’ll have to try out this method next time.
All so helpful. Thank you!
You’re welcome! 🙂