How to dry Sage

Do you grow sage in your garden? Sage is a fantastic herb to grow and is extreamly easy to dry. In fact sage is one of the best herbs to dry as it does not hold much moisture like many other herbs – it is less tender than other herbs. There are many ways you can dry sage. In this article we will tell you how to dry sage and the different methods you can use.

The methods you can use for drying Sage is:-

• Air drying
• Food Dehydrator
• Oven cook

Before you decide which method you would like to use, you need to prepare your Sage leaves first.

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Preparing your Sage Leaves for drying

1. The first step to drying sage leaves is to prepare your leaves. This is done by pulling the sage leaves off the stem. Do this gently and lay them on a towel – make sure it is clean. Pulling them off is quicker than cutting them off with scissors.
2. Once you have got enough sage leaves you next need to inspect everyone of these – looking to see if any leaf is damaged, it has been eaten and looks diseased. You only want the nice healthy leaves to use.
3. While you are inspecting for damaged leaves you need to check them for insects they could be extremely small. Look for any tell tale signs like eggs or webs. Any sign of insects chuck them away.
4. Now you need to wash your sage – the easiest way is to get a colander like what you use for washing salad leaves. Wash the leaves for a few seconds. make sure you shake the colander to get the water off. You can now lay your sage leaves on a clean towel for them to dry – you can speed it up by blotting them with the towel to get off any water.

Now you have prepared your sage you are ready to choose a drying technique for the sage. Below are 3 different ways of drying sage. Choose the method you would like to try

Drying Sage Techniques

How to dry Sage by air drying.

1. First you need to gather 10 leaves on top of one another into a little bundle of leaves. Then you can tie them together at the stalk end – leave some extra string for when you want to hang them up. The best item to tie them together is a rubber band as when the sage dries out the rubber band will get tighter around the stalks keeping them held together.
2. Next you need to place you sage bundles in small paper bags which have holes in them for ventilation – do not use plastic bags as this can cause mold on the leaf.
3. You can now hang your sage upside down from the stalk end. Make sure the paper bag stays on as this stops dust getting on them. Leave them to hang in a dry area of the house.
4. Take the bundle of sage down every day and turn them around in the paper bag. This is because one side could be drying faster than the other. When turning them around watch out for any mold forming – this is usually obvious from the black spots appearing. If this is the case take them down and choose a different method. This happens if your house is humid.
5. You will need to leave them to dry for around 10 days to get them to full crispness. You will know they are ready when they just crumble in your fingers from how dry they are.
6. The last step is to do a final check for insects. Either put them in the over for 30 mins on 160 degrees Fahrenheit or put them in the freezer for 48 hours.

How to dry sage using a Food Dehydrator

One way of drying your sage leaves is to use a food dehydrator – this is a faster process than hanging the sage. Here are the simple steps for using the food dehydrator.

1. Set your dehydrator at a temperature of around 110 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Lay the leaves spread out on the tray so that they are not touching each other. This can affect the drying.
3. Keep checking the sage leaves every 30 minutes to see how they are drying. They could take between 2- 4 hours depending on your dehydrator.
4. You will know when the leaves are dry as they will crumble in your hands.

How to use an oven for drying sage

1. Pre heat your oven on the lowest temperature on the oven. Drying them in the oven needs to take a long time as you don’t want to risk cooking them.
2. Lay your sage leaves on baking paper. Do not let the leaves over lap this can affect the drying process.
3. If you use an electric oven use something to wedge the oven door partially open as the air needs to circulate plus the oven won’t get too hot. You cannot risk cooking them. If you are using a gas oven keep opening the door every 5 minutes as gas is harmful if the door is left open.
4. Every 30 minutes you need to flip the leaves over. This can be done with oven tongs.
5. You need to check the sage every 15 minutes you cannot let the herb dry too much. It should take up to an hour for the sage to dry in an oven.
6. You will know your sage has dried when it crumbles in your fingers.

You now know the 3 ways of drying sage. The quickest way is in the oven but you just have to make sure you do not cook the sage instead of dry it.

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