It's a Matter of Dehydrating Parsley from your Garden

Well, the frost is definitely on the pumpkin around here.  The summer garden is finished. This was the last survivor until I harvested it.  It is my "Parsley tree".  

No, Parsley really isn't a tree, but this one turned into one.  What is really amazing is that it grew this well in drought conditions!

Dehydrating Your Own Parsley:

This is one portion of the 'tree'.  Just know that 2.5 feet of this plant is in the sink and not shown in this photo.  This plant had 2 stems that were very similar like that.

I rinsed the parsley in the sink. Use a salad spinner to get as much of the moisture off the plant as possible.

 I then started cutting/breaking off stems of the Parsley plant. Next, I stripped each stem and put the smaller pieces of parsley on the mesh inlays on each tray.

I had several trays full.  I dehydrated them overnight outside.  It really smelled delicious!

Remember that full tray of Parsley above?  This is what it looked like after it was dehydrated.

I had 8 trays of dried parsley when I was finished.

Remember the Mesh inlays?  I lifted each one up carefully held the to middle edges together making a type if a cone/funnel.

An carefully tapped the parsley into the container.  I ended up flipping my fingers on the mesh to help it dislodge and fall into the funnel.

I put a piece of paper-towel under the container to catch 'stray pieces' of Parsley. Next, I took the clean handle of one of my rubber spatula and started compressing the parsley. This helps it break into the small pieces that you traditionally see when you purchase dehydrated parsley.

Intermittently I would roll the paper-towel and tap the escaped parsley into the funnel. How much parsley did the 8 trays produce for me?

Enough to refill this bottle I purchased years ago. I just keep filling it from Parsley that I grow in my garden.

Isn't this a thing of beauty?

Take Home Points:

• I bought one Parsley plant for $1.50.  It produced the equivalent of a container of McCormick Gourmet Collection Parsley Flakes 2oz which sells for $11.80 on Amazon.  This means that I saved 87% on this item.
• It smells so fresh every time you open the container.
• You know if you put pesticides on your plant or not if you grow them yourself.  I didn't use any and this plant still flourished. 
• You know how old your Parsley is. When you purchase herbs from the store, you do not know how long ago they were processed or how long they have been sitting on the shelf.  
• Parsley is very easy to grow, and you get often get a good yield. This year, I planted my Parsley in  my raised bed instead of my little free-standing herb garden just outside my kitchen door.  I think this is what made the difference. I will be doing this again next year.

Try it!