Drying Basil
On Wed, 17 Sep 2003 10:38:50 -0400, Allan Matthews
wrote:
When I planted my new raised garden July 15, I bought a left over
withered basil plant and stuck it in. Now it is 2 feet in diameter, 2
feet tall and dense with leaves. How is the best way to dry
this?Thanks
With a food dehydrator, probably.
But I don't dry basil, I don't think the taste holds up very
well to drying. I freeze it, and this keeps all that great
'fresh basil taste' (although not the texture, of course)..
I puree lots of basil leaves in my blender, with enough
water to make a thick but pourable slurry. Then I pour this
into ice-cube trays and freeze them. When they're frozen
solid, I take the 'basil-cubes' out of the ice trays and
store them in the freezer in a freezer bag.
Then I just grab a basil cube or two and toss it into soups,
stews, chili or pasta sauce whenever I'm cooking them.
Pat
--
"Rats and roaches live by competition under the laws of
supply and demand. It is the privilege of human beings to
live under the laws of justice and mercy." - Wendell Berry
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