I just connected with you a few months ago and have learned so much! I always check with you when I am getting ready to dehydrate something so that I am doing it correctly. Basil is what I will be dehydrating today! You ask what our favorite herb is, and I have actually 2 favorites.... Chocolate Mint as I love drinking the tea made from it and Nettle because it is so medicinally good for you. I have a Nettles Blend that I use in most everything I cook.
Good job! I've been raising and dehydrating all sorts of herbs in my organic garden for years. While it likely isn't going to be noticed nor is it harmful to eat a basil leaf that had dark brown spots on the leaf, I discard all such leaves as I am picking good leaves from the plants or washing and placing them in the dehydrator. I also discard yellowed or other discolored leaves as most of the oils and flavor are already gone from the plant. Just stick with nice fresh green leaves and the basil will have a more robust flavor. Got my last end of season batch of basil going in my dehydrator today on the last day of September! Also, if some plants go to seed, just pull off the ends with the seeds and let the dry out naturally. Then replant next year. Do not save seeds from diseased plants of course.
I tried dehydrating broccoli after watching your video. I hadn't previously done it because I figured the size difference between the stems and the florets would cause an issue with dehydrating and/or rehydrating. But it made an excellent broccoli-cheese soup and shot straight to the top of my list of favorite foods to dehydrate. TFS!
It is actually a good idea to do your own herb drying, I read recently all samples of dry herbs tested have been found to contain lead, cadmium and arsenic. Most contaminants were found in thyme and oregano. I was particularly interested in basil so this video has given me the information I needed. Thank you.
@@ThePurposefulPantry that is true , but I am guessing most herbs they tested were the packaged ones we buy in store which come from different regions and are not organically grown. To me that was a bit of a shock as I use oregano and basil the most .
Yay! I’m getting a bean here and their. I dehydrated my kale and lettuce and ground to powder to make that super green food. I use in mashed potatoes, soups and stews. Swiss Chard is coming in nicely! I’m freezing my beans until I get enough to pressure can. Nothing else has come in, like my tomatoes and squash or peppers, but I’m starting to get something. I’m in Zone 6b Michigan.
Thanks for this. I had basil in my dehydrator for 20 hrs and still not close to dry and thought I had done something wrong or my machine wasn’t working right. Was tempted to turn temp higher than 95, but found this video and I didn’t. I guess it will just take as long as it takes! Haha
Thank you so so much for sharing this information with us! I am new to the Gardening/food preserving/dehydrating adventure. And I am so thankful to have found your channel! I just watched your video on how to dehydrate cherry tomatoes because my garden has been abundant in yellow pear tomatoes. LOL Whew, I'm trying to figure out what to do with all of them.
I have a hard time growing it in TX - it's hot and if I don't keep up on the watering, it can die off quickly - especially when we've had no rain for weeks on end.
@@ThePurposefulPantry I’m growing my tomatoes and peppers in buckets, and have put the buckets into Rubbermaid totes which I keep about 4 to 6 inches of water in. I put half a dozen basil plants in smaller pots in the totes, too, and they grow like I have never seen before! They love the constant supply of water! Just keep it below the rim of the pots. I fertilize all every two weeks. It is in the high 90s here in Florida and not much rain, but the totes keep me from having to water twice a day. It just works.
Basil is my absolute favorite! My scratch-made tomato basil bisque demands it, for one thing. Any tomato sauce begs for it. I learned quickly to either put a screen over the leaves or turn off the the dehydrator or dry leaves will blow out.
I don't have that issue - but then I don't open the door until it has come to a complete stop, ad don't have an issue. But smaller leaves can do that - so I do top for things like oregano, etc.
I appreciate how you demonstrate and encourage us to get started, even if it’s small. We ran out of store bought dried basil yesterday and I have a few small basil plants growing. Is it worth me drying a small amount of basil so that we don’t have to buy more. Your video answered my question - yes, yes it is!
Just got my 1st ever harvest just this morning from my garden & it was Basil(from pruning). Then I saw you put out this video! Great timing. Also I just found out you have to prune them to get it to grow bushy & not just a long stem lol. My tomatoes are opposite, have to prune to keep from getting to bushy. I have the Basil sitting in water on the counter till I decide what I want to do with this 1st little bit(I have a huge dehydrater). Thanks for the video!
Sometimes when I have a small bit of herb to dry I just lay them on a paper towel in the kitchen. I lay them out of the way till they are dry, turning them over 1/2 way through.
@@christinariggs896 Yes, me too. Gardening is my stress free time. I have a new pepper this year called Candy Cane. It has variegated leaves and the peppers are striped. I'm just getting one fruit that is about an inch long and I'm so excited about it!!
Lol, about the pronunciation because I watch a lot of British gardening utubers and I have to remember to say the American pronunciation of compost. Great channel. Blessings, TeresaSue, 🖐🏻 from Idaho.
I just ordered a dehydrator it should be here anyday. They did not have any of the mats in stock I want to do some basil green onions and chives when it arrives can I use parchment paper until I can get some mats ordered.
TY for these vids! I was confident enough to do dill this week, today I’m doing 🌿 basil. Wish I’d had done this last year. I didn’t know what to do, so I have A LOT of pesto in my fridge. LOL 😂
I love seeing your videos! Great information. Question...what if some leaves dry faster than others? Do you leave them all til whole batch is dry? Is there such a thing as over drying some while waiting for others to dry?
@@ThePurposefulPantry Over drying removes oils which add to the flavor. Normally its the smaller leaves that dry the fastest. When checking on the dryness, if some are clearly ready, I go ahead and remove them, leaving the rest to keep drying. Trust me, it will be ok to do that.
The same way you dehydrate them in any machine :D Cut them up some to make them easier to dry, and dry at 95F/35C for best results, but anything under 125F/52C is fine.
Hello Darcy from sunny Chicago. Thank you for all your educational videos. A bit off topic. I just got a great deal on Alpen Muesli. How do I store it so the raisins don't make the cereal moist or stale? I have a vacuum sealer, chamber,jars and bags. Blessings.
You know you have Australian people watching you .lol . Well me any way .I do dill basil fanel sage bloody spell me k keeps changing the spelling and it’s not right 🙄but anyway I do a few different herbs dry them all out chuck em in a bottle and that’s my mixed herbs 👍.thank you for sharing all you videos I think they are very handy and great .thanks mate lol 👍😂
so many choices! I'm confused 🥺 on whT food oxygen absorbers to buy??? cost, size 100cc?200cc? 500cc? Also vacumm sealing RICE. do you wash first Because of arsenic or just wait til I use the rice & rinse it. I'm a newby vac sealer...
I dehydrated scallions , they took days and I think they were dried too long and then burned , I don't think they are good . I did not blanch them first .
You where saying you run your dehydrator wether it's full or not-do you ever use the little dehydrator that you did the maraschino cherries in for the smaller batches? If not does it not work as well?
Yes - I use it a lot now - just not always in a video because it doesn't have permanent storage on my kitchen cabinet (I have a very small kitchen space to use. So if nothing else is in the Cosori I'll just use it.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Good to know- my neighbors have one that they don't use that I was considering buying. I have the Excalibur and am using that. But was thinking a smaller one would be nice for smaller batches. Thank you!
@@ThePurposefulPantry ok so when we make the dough and set it in a warm place for 30 minutes, we can instead put it in the dehydrator at the proper temp so it can rise??
@ Darcy, good video! I have question, Leissa at suttons daze mention she bought powdered horseradish, do you know anything about dehydrating fresh shredded or leaves?? I have a horseradish plant we use fresh within 3 months, but you can't freeze it because it doesn't retain the taste, can't can it either. Any suggestions or possible video??
Nope - not necessary ;) But I do vacuum seal things that are longer-term for me when I feel it necessary. I hate working with O2 absorbers - too wasteful.
What's your favorite herb? 📍 LINKS MENTIONED
HOW TO DRY HERBS (FREE GUIDE AND RECIPES)
www.thepurposefulpantry.com/how-to-dry-herbs/
I just connected with you a few months ago and have learned so much! I always check with you when I am getting ready to dehydrate something so that I am doing it correctly. Basil is what I will be dehydrating today! You ask what our favorite herb is, and I have actually 2 favorites.... Chocolate Mint as I love drinking the tea made from it and Nettle because it is so medicinally good for you. I have a Nettles Blend that I use in most everything I cook.
Basil is my favorite 😊 but sage & thyme & & & are oh, so close!😉
My Favorite herb to dry is sage because it's so fragrant during and after when crushed.
Parsley. ? For you-have you dehydrated kohlrabi? Wondered if it would turn dark or needed citric acid, or blanched first
Oregano I just like the smell
Good job! I've been raising and dehydrating all sorts of herbs in my organic garden for years. While it likely isn't going to be noticed nor is it harmful to eat a basil leaf that had dark brown spots on the leaf, I discard all such leaves as I am picking good leaves from the plants or washing and placing them in the dehydrator. I also discard yellowed or other discolored leaves as most of the oils and flavor are already gone from the plant. Just stick with nice fresh green leaves and the basil will have a more robust flavor. Got my last end of season batch of basil going in my dehydrator today on the last day of September!
Also, if some plants go to seed, just pull off the ends with the seeds and let the dry out naturally. Then replant next year. Do not save seeds from diseased plants of course.
I tried dehydrating broccoli after watching your video. I hadn't previously done it because I figured the size difference between the stems and the florets would cause an issue with dehydrating and/or rehydrating. But it made an excellent broccoli-cheese soup and shot straight to the top of my list of favorite foods to dehydrate. TFS!
Glad you loved it!
Thank you, this week I dehydrated strawberries, basil, thyme, oregano, sage, and now on to the blueberries ...thank you thank you
It is actually a good idea to do your own herb drying, I read recently all samples of dry herbs tested have been found to contain lead, cadmium and arsenic. Most contaminants were found in thyme and oregano. I was particularly interested in basil so this video has given me the information I needed. Thank you.
It's based on what you grow it in.
@@ThePurposefulPantry that is true , but I am guessing most herbs they tested were the packaged ones we buy in store which come from different regions and are not organically grown. To me that was a bit of a shock as I use oregano and basil the most .
yes food grown in dirt commercially. like rice, skins of potatoes etc. wash rinse etc
Yay! I’m getting a bean here and their. I dehydrated my kale and lettuce and ground to powder to make that super green food. I use in mashed potatoes, soups and stews. Swiss Chard is coming in nicely! I’m freezing my beans until I get enough to pressure can. Nothing else has come in, like my tomatoes and squash or peppers, but I’m starting to get something. I’m in Zone 6b Michigan.
Thanks for this. I had basil in my dehydrator for 20 hrs and still not close to dry and thought I had done something wrong or my machine wasn’t working right. Was tempted to turn temp higher than 95, but found this video and I didn’t. I guess it will just take as long as it takes! Haha
Thank you so so much for sharing this information with us! I am new to the Gardening/food preserving/dehydrating adventure. And I am so thankful to have found your channel! I just watched your video on how to dehydrate cherry tomatoes because my garden has been abundant in yellow pear tomatoes. LOL Whew, I'm trying to figure out what to do with all of them.
Dehydrating certainly allows you not to have to think about that once you've got them dried - you'll have them stored and can use them all year long!
Appreciate shareing your knowledge. Thank you.
One of my favorite herbs, Basil. I live in Southern Utah and have a really hard time growing it.
I have a hard time growing it in TX - it's hot and if I don't keep up on the watering, it can die off quickly - especially when we've had no rain for weeks on end.
@@ThePurposefulPantry I’m growing my tomatoes and peppers in buckets, and have put the buckets into Rubbermaid totes which I keep about 4 to 6 inches of water in. I put half a dozen basil plants in smaller pots in the totes, too, and they grow like I have never seen before! They love the constant supply of water! Just keep it below the rim of the pots. I fertilize all every two weeks. It is in the high 90s here in Florida and not much rain, but the totes keep me from having to water twice a day. It just works.
Thank you for posting. I just bought basil and dill at the farmers market (fresh of course) I love bot.
Basil is my absolute favorite! My scratch-made tomato basil bisque demands it, for one thing. Any tomato sauce begs for it. I learned quickly to either put a screen over the leaves or turn off the the dehydrator or dry leaves will blow out.
I don't have that issue - but then I don't open the door until it has come to a complete stop, ad don't have an issue. But smaller leaves can do that - so I do top for things like oregano, etc.
Learned that myself with ground beef on parchment paper. Blew all over my porch 🤣
I appreciate how you demonstrate and encourage us to get started, even if it’s small.
We ran out of store bought dried basil yesterday and I have a few small basil plants growing. Is it worth me drying a small amount of basil so that we don’t have to buy more. Your video answered my question - yes, yes it is!
You have the gift of encouragement! God bless you👍🌺🙏
Just got my 1st ever harvest just this morning from my garden & it was Basil(from pruning). Then I saw you put out this video! Great timing. Also I just found out you have to prune them to get it to grow bushy & not just a long stem lol. My tomatoes are opposite, have to prune to keep from getting to bushy. I have the Basil sitting in water on the counter till I decide what I want to do with this 1st little bit(I have a huge dehydrater). Thanks for the video!
Sometimes when I have a small bit of herb to dry I just lay them on a paper towel in the kitchen. I lay them out of the way till they are dry, turning them over 1/2 way through.
@@RoseFelton Thanks for the tip! Still learning. It is soooo much fun watching the plants start to grow fruit!
@@christinariggs896 Yes, me too. Gardening is my stress free time. I have a new pepper this year called Candy Cane. It has variegated leaves and the peppers are striped. I'm just getting one fruit that is about an inch long and I'm so excited about it!!
Love your videos! It’s my first time drying herbs and today it’s Basil. In your video, you answer any questions that I may have had. Thanks!!!
Serious happy dance. I'm up to my earballs in basil! This is such my favorite channel
Thank you! I was confused about the last batch I did.
Yes ma'am small and steady is what I did for years new peep here.
Such a timely vid, thank you
I really love all your videos on dehydrating. I've learned so much. When is your book coming out. Waiting.
When I can get it finished - I'm getting close, but I have only so much time in a day.
My first harvest of basil is in the dehydrator right now.
Thanks for the demo Darcy :-)
Lol, about the pronunciation because I watch a lot of British gardening utubers and I have to remember to say the American pronunciation of compost.
Great channel. Blessings, TeresaSue, 🖐🏻 from Idaho.
I just ordered a dehydrator it should be here anyday. They did not have any of the mats in stock I want to do some basil green onions and chives when it arrives can I use parchment paper until I can get some mats ordered.
Yep - and you don't have to wait for the company - you can find some inexpensive generic ones on Amazon, depending on the size.
TY for these vids! I was confident enough to do dill this week, today I’m doing 🌿 basil. Wish I’d had done this last year. I didn’t know what to do, so I have A LOT of pesto in my fridge. LOL 😂
You got this!
I love seeing your videos! Great information. Question...what if some leaves dry faster than others? Do you leave them all til whole batch is dry? Is there such a thing as over drying some while waiting for others to dry?
You leave it all in. for the most part, no. ruclips.net/video/mz8n8EuwZdg/видео.html
@@ThePurposefulPantry Over drying removes oils which add to the flavor. Normally its the smaller leaves that dry the fastest. When checking on the dryness, if some are clearly ready, I go ahead and remove them, leaving the rest to keep drying. Trust me, it will be ok to do that.
Could you make pesto packages of basil like Knorr’s?
Yes - as long as you don't use oils - do that in the end.
Hyssop takes a long time, too. (48hrs) It surprised me.
Good to know. My hyssop is pretty small yet but will plan on dehydrating it when it's time.
How do you dehydrate garlic scapes in a Nesco TD-38??
The same way you dehydrate them in any machine :D Cut them up some to make them easier to dry, and dry at 95F/35C for best results, but anything under 125F/52C is fine.
Very helpful video--as all yours are!
Glad you think so!
Just got this dehydrator This month and did my first batch of basil. It took so long I thought I did something wrong 😭
Time for basil stockpile 👍
So much so! I go through so much!
Can you make pesto from dehydrated basil? If so, do you mind sharing the information?
Make it from fresh or frozen ;)
So helpful, Darcy! What about the parts that flower? Dh them or not?
If your basil has bolted, it may not be worth eating to you (taste them first). I'd presume the flowers will taste better fresh than dried.
Hello Darcy from sunny Chicago. Thank you for all your educational videos. A bit off topic. I just got a great deal on Alpen Muesli. How do I store it so the raisins don't make the cereal moist or stale? I have a vacuum sealer, chamber,jars and bags. Blessings.
You don't - you can dry it out more in the oven, but muesli isn't a long-term storage item. You'll get a few months out of it as is.
You know you have Australian people watching you .lol . Well me any way .I do dill basil fanel sage bloody spell me k keeps changing the spelling and it’s not right 🙄but anyway I do a few different herbs dry them all out chuck em in a bottle and that’s my mixed herbs 👍.thank you for sharing all you videos I think they are very handy and great .thanks mate lol 👍😂
Me too 🇦🇺
I have one of those mixed bag bottles, too!
so many choices! I'm confused 🥺 on whT food oxygen absorbers to buy??? cost, size 100cc?200cc? 500cc? Also vacumm sealing RICE. do you wash first Because of arsenic or just wait til I use the rice & rinse it. I'm a newby vac sealer...
You don't use O2 in dehydrating. You never moisten rice to store unless you are dehydrating it and then storing.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Well crap! I just purchased 02 absorbers from Amazon today.
After you wash your fresh herbs, do you paper-towel dry them before placing on trays, or are you dehydrating them moist?
I just let them air dry a bit or use a tea towel, but be gentle, you don't want to bruise them.
Can you dry more that one herb at a time, or do they transfer smell and taste to each other?
If you saw - I did thyme and basil together ;) Yes - you can do them together.
Duh, sorry I have COVID brain. Thanks
I have a question. What is the name of the moisture packs you put in jars ? Thanks in advance
Desiccant packs, silica gel packs, moisture absorbers
@@ThePurposefulPantry thank you
Why does the fragrance disappear after awhile once dried?
it degrades. That's the nature of food.
@@ThePurposefulPantry thought maybe I did something wrong! Thanks
Is there a general rule of thumb with how long the shelf life is for dehydrated foods?
12-18 months is optimal. Practically - you'll get longer, depending on the food - fruits and tomatoes less time than veg.
I dehydrated scallions , they took days and I think they were dried too long and then burned , I don't think they are good . I did not blanch them first .
You don't need to blanch - and you can't dry too long, but you can dry too hot.
You where saying you run your dehydrator wether it's full or not-do you ever use the little dehydrator that you did the maraschino cherries in for the smaller batches? If not does it not work as well?
Yes - I use it a lot now - just not always in a video because it doesn't have permanent storage on my kitchen cabinet (I have a very small kitchen space to use. So if nothing else is in the Cosori I'll just use it.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Good to know- my neighbors have one that they don't use that I was considering buying. I have the Excalibur and am using that. But was thinking a smaller one would be nice for smaller batches. Thank you!
Could you tell me what it means proofing bread and yogurt???
It's the rising stage of bread or the stage in yogurt where it sits as it develops.
@@ThePurposefulPantry ok so when we make the dough and set it in a warm place for 30 minutes, we can instead put it in the dehydrator at the proper temp so it can rise??
@ Darcy, good video! I have question, Leissa at suttons daze mention she bought powdered horseradish, do you know anything about dehydrating fresh shredded or leaves?? I have a horseradish plant we use fresh within 3 months, but you can't freeze it because it doesn't retain the taste, can't can it either. Any suggestions or possible video??
dehydrating doesn't keep the kick - but the flavor.
@@ThePurposefulPantry awesome to know!! Thank you!!
I had a basil leaf drying with the rest for about 12+ hours and it's still not dry...everything else is crispy.
Do you ever put oxygen absorbers in your jars ??
Nope - not necessary ;) But I do vacuum seal things that are longer-term for me when I feel it necessary. I hate working with O2 absorbers - too wasteful.
Is oregano done the same way
yes - I just leave it on the stem and strip after.
I didn’t like freezing Basil it went goopy