This video continues my Dehydrating 101 Series with one of my favorite topics—how to dry and dehydrate herbs. Whether you’re using an electric dehydrator, your oven, or simply the air in your warm kitchen, I’ll walk you through how to get perfect results every time.
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Table of Contents
Choosing and Preparing Your Herbs
From my central Texas garden, I’ve gathered a few of my favorites: flat-leaf Italian parsley, chives, peppermint, oregano, lavender, and rosemary.
- Tip #1: Before drying, always wash and pat your herbs dry.
- Tip #2: Remove any wilted leaves and make sure everything looks fresh and vibrant.
Methods for Drying Herbs
You can choose from any of the following methods to dry herbs:
- Air Drying: This method is perfect for delicate herbs like parsley, mint, and oregano. Spread them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Alternatively, you can tie them into small bundles with kitchen twine and hang the bundles in a warm spot out of direct sunlight. Within a day or two, you’ll have beautifully dried herbs ready to crumble.
- Oven Drying: If your oven has a low setting (150–200°F / 66-93°C), you can speed the drying process up. Keep the door slightly open for airflow and check your herbs every hour. Most will dry within four hours.
- Dehydrator Drying: If you have a dehydrator, set it between 90°F and 110°F (32°C and 43°C), depending on the herb. Delicate herbs like parsley and chives will dry in about four hours, while sturdier herbs like rosemary may take 12–18 hours.
Special Tips for Success
You’ll find that drying herbs is more than just a way to preserve your harvest. Drying and dehydrating reaches back to the way our ancestors preserved food. Every time you open a jar of your home-dried rosemary or mint, you’ll be reminded of the tradition of your ancestors and the care and patience that went into creating something truly homemade.
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The Modern Pioneer Pantry
Simple ingredients, timeless techniques, and a well-stocked pantry. Discover over 100 nourishing recipes to preserve food and turn pantry staples into homemade meals. Build a wholesome, traditional pantry—just like a modern pioneer!
If you enjoy dehydrating or other methods of preserving foods, be sure to get my new cookbook, The Modern Pioneer Pantry. In addition to learning how to create your Four Corners Pantry, you’ll find over 115 recipes from home canning, to drying, fermenting, pickling, and more to preserve your bounty.
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The first is filled with time-honored recipes to help you create a traditional foods kitchen, while the second is your complete guide to home food preservation. Order both books today to start or continue your traditional foods journey.
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Seasonal ingredients, traditional techniques, and nourishing recipes. Over 85 traditional, from-scratch recipes! Discover for yourself how you can use simple ingredients and traditional techniques to cook the modern pioneer way.
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For an extensive list of the traditional foods you can make and purchase to stock your pantry, be sure to download my free 36-page Traditional Foods Pantry List. This comprehensive eBook is full of links to recipe videos, helpful articles, and more!
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Are you looking for more traditional foods videos? If so, I invite you to join the Traditional Foods Kitchen Academy. Members of this optional paid YouTube community get access to exclusive videos and other members-only perks. Plus, your YouTube comments include a special members-only badge.
Kitchen Academy Videos
How to Make Oatmeal Higher in Protein (The Old-Fashioned Way)
Turn simple oats into a hearty, protein-rich porridge.
The Only Traditional Recipes You’ll Ever Need!
Focus on traditional recipes with real food. Don’t chase trends.
Let’s Talk Akkermansia: A Tiny Helper for Big Gut Health
Discover how Akkermansia muciniphila supports gut and immune health—and how traditional foods help this mighty microbe thrive.
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I look forward to having you join me in my Texas Hill Country Kitchen!
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Favorite Dehydrating Supplies
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