Drying rosemary: the best tips and tricks

Drying rosemary works easier than expected. The popular Mediterranean herb can be dried without much effort and then used in many ways.

Drying rosemary: timing and harvest

It is important to pick the right time before you dry the rosemary. This is the only way to obtain suitable herbs that do not become moldy or rot during drying.

• Time : Dry days are particularly suitable. You should harvest it at noon, as the rosemary has the greatest amount of aromas at that time.
• Harvest : Harvest is done with sharp scissors (alternatively knives) and the branches are cut off directly on the trunk or main shoot. Healthy shoots and needles have a much tastier aroma. Choose this preferably.
• After harvesting, the needles are not removed from the shoots. The shoots also contain many essential oils. The shoots also make drying much easier.

Drying rosemary made easy

As soon as you have finished harvesting, you can start drying immediately. Do not wash the sprigs of rosemary, otherwise the moisture can stimulate mold.

1. Put between six and eight rosemary shoots in small bundles. The bundles are tied together a little above the interfaces with a fixed cord like a parcel cord.
2. Now hang the bundles upside down in a dry room that can be ventilated. You can use nails or clotheslines to hang it up.
3. Let the bunches of rosemary hang there until they dry.
4. Alternatively, you can spread the shoots out on a large table or on a flat surface and let them dry. However, this variant takes significantly more time.
5. If you do not have enough space to air dry, the oven is ideal for drying. Spread the branches on a grid and set the oven to the lowest temperature. The rosemary is dried for about four hours. During this time the furnace door is opened a crack.

How to properly care for culinary herbs can be read in another article.