How to Dry Parsley Using 3 Methods

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While fresh parsley is useful in the kitchen, it also pays to learn how to dry parsley so you can extend your homegrown harvest for many months to come. While many cooks think of parsley as a mere garnish, it is quite a flavorful herb that can add a touch of freshness to recipes. Gardeners who grow a bumper crop of either flat leaf or curly parsley can dry parsley one of three ways. In this article, you’ll learn these techniques and additional tips for success.

Some culinary herbs are best used as fresh herbs in a green, recently harvested state, including basil, cilantro, and mint. But others make great dried herbs, such as oregano, thyme, and rosemary. Parsley sits somewhere in between because you can use it fresh or dried. If you dry parsley correctly, the flavor is milder, but it still adds a nice accent to your favorite recipe.

Dried parsley lasts for months. If properly dried, it retains its color and bright flavor, though it won’t be quite as strong as fresh parsley. I use my dried parsley in chicken dishes, in my homemade stock and bone broth, and as a topper on pan-seared fish filets.

When thinking about how to dry parsley, it’s important to consider how long the process will take. Some drying methods are faster than others. Regardless of which of these three parsley-drying methods you use, the easiest way to know when the leaves are dry is by feel. Fully dry parsley will crumble when rubbed between your thumb and forefinger. It flakes into smaller pieces easily and will be crunchy, not leathery.

Learning how to dry parsley