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Herbs straight out of your garden make a wonderful accompaniment to fresh salads. Simply wash and drain the excess water, and gently tear the herbs with your fingers or give a rough chop on your cutting board (don’t chop too much, as the more you chop, the less flavor your herbs will have; the flavor will be in your cutting board!) For even more flavor, don’t chop or tear at all! Basil, tarragon, chives, parsley, chervil, cilantro and mint all make great additions to fresh salads. For a freshly-flavored potato salad, try adding some fresh dill and parsley - you’ll love the depth of flavor. For fresh salsas (see pico de gallo recipe in our tomato recipe collection), cilantro is a must! Bon appetit!
The best time to harvest your herbs is mid-morning, after the morning dew has evaporated and before the afternoon heat has caused any of the oils in the plant to evaporate. Do not let your herbs flower, as this distracts from the flavor. Rather, deadhead/pinch (remove) the flowers so that the leaves/foliage are more flavorful. Most herb plants you can harvest 2/3 of the plant at a time, let it grow, and harvest again.
Most people opt to dry their remaining summer herbs, before fall peaks it’s nose around the corner. To dry your herbs, first follow the harvesting method described above. After harvesting, wash your herbs thoroughly and blot the wet herbs with paper towels, gently lifting the water from the leaves and stems. You can either hang your herbs to dry or dry them on a mesh/screen tray (for good circulation). No matter which method you decide, make certain to dry your herbs in a warm, dry place out of direct sunlight (an attic, dry cellar or dark room are suitable). Never hang your herbs in a warm kitchen or garage, as steam and fumes can be a problem.
To hang your herbs dry, simply bunch and tie at the end and hang on hooks (or something similar). You may want to spread newspaper below the herbs, as seeds and bits of the herbs may fall to the ground, creating a mess. If your herbs are going to be used for culinary purposes, it is wise to cover the bunches with a thin material (such as muslin) to keep dust away from your drying herbs (nobody wants a little dust with their dinner!).
For a tray drying method, make sure there is good circulation; the tray needs a mesh bottom so that air can circulate below the tray. Cuttings with small leaves (such as thyme) can be dried on the stems and stripped once dried. For herbs with larger leaves (such as basil), go ahead and remove the leaves from their stems and dry. It is much easier to remove the leaves from their stems before they dry! If you do not have a suitable location to dry your herbs, you can dry them in an oven at 122 degrees F (or lowest temperature setting your oven will allow), making sure the door is left ajar. Once your herbs are crackly dry, you can store the whole leaves in airtight containers for six months to a year (crackle when you are ready to use them). Below are a couple of “dried herb recipe blends” you can have fun with!
Mix these dried herbs together:
1 Tb basil
1 Tb marjoram
1/2 Tb rosemary
1 Tb summer savory
1 Tb thyme
1 bay leaf, crushed
1 tsp lavender
Optional
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp sage
Tie together with a string (or bundle in a cheesecloth):
parsley, thyme & bay leaf
Depending on the dish you are making, these are optional:
basil, burnet, thyme, chervil, rosemary, oregano, peppercorns, savory and tarragon
Equal parts sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley, savory and marjoram (black pepper, half part)
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