Year after year, I pick all of my lovely herbs and try and dry them. You will see in my pictures, I tried hanging them in my garage in pretty little bunches to dry and ended up with brown, ugly bunches. I bought a dehydrator at a garage sale and it filled the house with an awful smell which I figured out was the plastic melting….ewwweee…
So this year I vowed to find a better way to preserve and use my bountiful herb harvest…and I think I found it….Herb salts, rubs and brine mixes….Salt has been used for thousands of years to preserve food — and there are so many combinations to make.
There are several cool things about using salt as the base — it keeps your herbs, bright and flavorful for up to a year in a well sealed jar — I am using those cute new ball 1/2 pint jars I found. There are also lots of fun, fancy salts to use..I used a grey French sea salt for this one…Check out this Gourmet Salt Guide from “The SaltWorks”…so many to chose from…imagine the combinations.
My first attempt I am calling Scarborough Fair…because it made with Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme…and some garlic for good measure…..
I can’t wait to try my hand at more now that I found this so easy and quick. I think next on my list is a salt brine mixture for my Thanksgiving turkey, a Moroccan mix, a Tuscan salt…and maybe I’ll even try some Lavender sugars….oh yeah…maybe some oil, salt rubs for me feet too…….the list is endless….
- 2 cups of loosely packed herbs before chopping (Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme)
- ½ cup coarse salt -- sea, kosher, etc.
- 4 to 5 cloves of garlic
- Wash herbs and air dry on towel.
- Clean garlic cloves, slice off ends and chop each into 2 to 4 pieces.
- You can use a food processor at this point if you like -- I prefer using a good knife and cutting board.
- With a food processor add salt and garlic pulse several times taking care not to turn it into a paste. Add herbs and pulse several times until you get the consistency shown below in my pictures.
- With a knife and cutting board. Pour your salt into a pile add the garlic and cut the garlic into the salt. Add the herbs and continue to chop until you get it all blended.
- Salt will help the drying process -- you can spread the mixture out on a cookie sheet and leave it by the window for a couple of days or if you have a gas oven you can set it in the off oven and the pilot light is enough to dry it in a day or two.
- Seal in a good jar and enjoy for up to a year!!!
Leave a Reply