Oregano and Thyme

[maskedsonnet]

Here's the harvest!! The sage, thyme, and oregano all fit in the dehydrator. The basil is waiting

[areyoukittenme]

A bounteous harvest of herbs!   Also I have that same colander on the right lol
I bet it's gonna smell amazing at your house while those are dehydrating!

[Shawn]

WOW, What a harvest!

[maskedsonnet]

The parsley is getting much fuller! It'll be time for a trim soon.




It's time to trim the basil too!!

[maskedsonnet]

Fed and trimmed the basil!!

I think when the next feeding rolls around I'll end this. I'm overflowing with dried basil at this point!!! I think I'll try a cucumber grow here, try to train it a little better than the vine I grew in the farm!!

[Shawn]

Have you ever tried to freeze it

[maskedsonnet]

Nov 6, 2022 4:17:51 GMT -5 Shawn said:

Have you ever tried to freeze it

I've never frozen herbs before! Do you freeze it in oil like garlic?

[scarfguy]

So... I tried freezing parsley and dill.  It doesn't work well at all. The water in the cells freeze and it looks good while frozen but when you unfreeze it, the cells seem to explode. The plant turns black and watery in a matter of minutes.  It tastes the same and will work well for seasoning sauces but you can't use it in a salad or as a garnish.  I also tried vacuum sealing with the same results.

The best preservation method is drying it as one would expect.  To make it last longer, you can dry it and then freeze the dried herb. That works well.

[Shawn]

Nov 6, 2022 9:46:38 GMT -5 scarfguy said:

So... I tried freezing parsley and dill.  It doesn't work well at all. The water in the cells freeze and it looks good while frozen but when you unfreeze it, the cells seem to explode. The plant turns black and watery in a matter of minutes.  It tastes the same and will work well for seasoning sauces but you can't use it in a salad or as a garnish.  I also tried vacuum sealing with the same results.

The best preservation method is drying it as one would expect.  To make it last longer, you can dry it and then freeze the dried herb. That works well.

Yes you are correct it does get watery BUT if it is being used in a sauce, soup, chili or even a salad (some) it still works and tastes great.  I only like to dry dill.

[scarfguy]

Nov 7, 2022 6:30:26 GMT -5 Shawn said:

Nov 6, 2022 9:46:38 GMT -5 scarfguy said:

So... I tried freezing parsley and dill.  It doesn't work well at all. The water in the cells freeze and it looks good while frozen but when you unfreeze it, the cells seem to explode. The plant turns black and watery in a matter of minutes.  It tastes the same and will work well for seasoning sauces but you can't use it in a salad or as a garnish.  I also tried vacuum sealing with the same results.

The best preservation method is drying it as one would expect.  To make it last longer, you can dry it and then freeze the dried herb. That works well.

Yes you are correct it does get watery BUT if it is being used in a sauce, soup, chili or even a salad (some) it still works and tastes great.  I only like to dry dill.

I've been drying a variety of herbs using a dehydrator with a setting of 95-105 degrees.  I haven't been happy with the results.... Not much flavor.  Is sun-drying or air-drying a whole lot better? 

How are youz guyz drying yur herbs???

[maskedsonnet]

An elderly round dehydrator with no temp control on it lol. It was a hand-me-down from my parents when they bought a new one. I think it works fine, just have to watch it!

[maskedsonnet]

I think the parsley may not have liked how cold the room got when it first got cold here. I think it got around 60 degrees in my house while I was at my parents last week. He's a little brown around the edges but seems to be recovering well!!



The basil still looks great!

[maskedsonnet]

Basil got a trimming

Parsley's still doing well

[Shawn]

I love how long you keep your plants going and going

[maskedsonnet]

Basil's bouncing back from the latest trim:



And the parsley's doing good too!