Drying herbs for the winter kitchen

Step by step

1. Step 1

   Harvest in the morning, dry

   Cut after the dew has burned off but before the heat of the day, when the oils are at their peak. Never wash herbs you intend to dry — any surface moisture invites mold. Brush off the garden and leave it at that.

2. Step 2

   Strip the lower stems

   Remove the leaves from the bottom few inches of each stem so the bundle ties cleanly. Damaged or yellowed leaves go to the compost, not the bundle.

3. Step 3

   Make small bundles

   Five or six stems to a bunch, tied tight at the stem end — the stems shrink as they dry and a loose bundle slides out of its string. Bigger bunches trap moisture in the middle, which is exactly where mold starts.

4. Step 4

   Hang in warm shade, not sun

   Direct sun bleaches the color and cooks off the flavor. Hang the bundles somewhere warm, dark-ish and airy — a beam in the kitchen, above the woodstove's warmth but not over its heat. In a damp week, a paper bag punched with holes over each bundle keeps dust off and air moving.

5. Step 5

   Check for the crackle

   Most herbs are done in one to two weeks: leaves should crumble crisply between your fingers, never bend. Any softness means more time. Thick-leaved herbs like sage can take three.

6. Step 6

   Jar whole, crumble at the pot

   Strip the leaves into jars whole or barely broken — crumbling ahead of time releases the oils you worked to keep. Label with the name and the date. Crumble between your palms over the pot when you cook; the warmth wakes them up.