Okay, may be a stupid question but I can not find it on the web after 4 days of looking so I have to ask. For the folowing herbs, can I use the stenms and leaves or just leaves? Thyme Taragon Parsley Basil Oregano As for cleaning them, I wash them and pick out dead stuff but when I did my first batch of parsley I found a couple ahpids made it past the washing stage. I am pretty sure they won't hurt anyone by being eaten after they are dried out husks but how do you get them all off?
I don't use stems, just the leaves. I simply hang my herbs until they are dried and then separate the leaves from the stems and put them in small, sealed jars.
Well Fish-- I also only use the leaves., just like Netty. As for aphids--If I suspect their presence, I plop the herbs in a salt-water bath for 10 min or so, swirling the leaves briskly a couple of times. The salt irritates the aphids and they let go pretty quickly...most of them sinking to the bottom of the container that you are soaking the leaves in. I use a circular medium-sized white plastic tub to do this in so that I can easily see the insects.
I dried the Italian OParsley with the stems on it and had mixed results. Most of the larger stems came off just fine but the smaller ones broke off into the bowl and were impossible to pick all of them out. I did notice they do have some flavor but I may just snip leaves next time and dry them alone to make it easier. Using a dehydrator might be making it harder to seperate when dry but I doubt that they would dry hanging them up in this humid cool weather we have had so much of this year.
Fish 4 All, Instead of drying parsley, try freezing it. I find that the flavor keeps much better, and the color is more attractive, also. I chop parsley, then add just enough water to make a "sludge", put that in ice cube trays, and when frozen, transfer to freezer bags or containers. This also works for basil, but use vegetable oil instead of water.
I also use the leaves only just like Netty and Sojerd. The aphids?? Normally after drying while picking out the leaves and if I notice there are dead bugs on it, I'll just pick it off.
Ude both for stews and soups tie the branches together so they can be removed before serving Grandpa Steve
