I know I've posted about this before but darn-it, I'm going to again. Because it's just soooo easy and quick and homegrown basil just has so much more flavor than the store bought stuff!!! Seriously, if you have 1 minute, you have enough time to dry some basil.
You can see in the photo above I have a little glass jar I've recycled (one of a billion because in our home I find a use for everything... everything! And rarely throw things away). Save old spice jars so you can refill them with either your own homegrown or if you buy in bulk to save money you can put them in smaller jars for using/serving etc.
OK now back to basil.
- Pick it.
- Rinse it.
- Place it on a paper towel.
- Put another paper towel over.
- Put in the microwave and turn it on for about 1 minute.
- Check it by lifting the paper towel (which is there to absorb moisture).
- You can now leave the paper towel off - and move the basil around a little bit, checking which might already be dry and which might need a few more seconds.
- Turn it back on for another 15 seconds or so... check again.
- Let the basil sit out on the counter for a minute for it to cool so you can really see how dry it is. If it's dry, and cool then it's time to either just put it all into a bottle or jar as it is or you can crumble it or chop it if you wish. It crumbles easily, it stores perfectly and it's ready for use in food dishes immediately.
