FLAVORING OILS WITH HERBS

The process described here can be used for any purpose whether it is medicinal (Aromatherapy, Oil Infusions, Massage Oils) or Culinary. However, these guidelines will be focusing on Table Oils, especially Olive Oils used in Salad Dressings. This does not prevent one from using this same technique for preparing Oil Infusions for Massage or Medicinal Purposes as well.

Herbs are commonly used for Salad Dressings because of their aromatic and flavoring properties. Consider using the ones that you might commonly buy at the store, such as Parsley, Thyme, and Oregano, to name a few.

Use fresh Herbs from your garden, or buy fresh Herbs that you know were not grown with the use of pesticides. It is important to choose the most perfect ones, and you will only need a small quantity to fill your Table Oil with aromatics and flavor. Selecting the stems and leaves that you will be using is the most important step of the whole process, as you will be using them for their natural beauty, as seen thru the bottle that you will be putting them. So, avoid broken leaves and stems, insect damaged, molded, or any other imperfection that you would not want to see floating around in the Oil to impair their natural beauty.

Drying your Herbs is the next very important step, and keep in mind that Oils and Water do not mix, setting up a fermentation and mould growth process. Using just a few stems and leaves at a time and keeping the bunch small will assist the drying process, allowing air to circulate and avoid mould and rot forming in the early part of drying process. Choose a warm, dry area of your home and string up your small bunches, leaves hanging down, until they are fully dry. The time will depend on the thickness of stems, air circulation, and temperature, et al. You can try breaking a small piece from a thicker area of a stem to check the ease of the break. It should not bend, but break with ease. Expect the color to change and lose most of it's green tone.

Storing is the next step, and if you are planning to use them at a later date, you will need to avoid excesses in light, dust, humidity, or any other kind of contamination. Placing them in any tightly closed container, that is kept in a dry place, and appropriately labeled with the name of the Herb and the Date stored should avoid problems down the line when you are wondering what is in the container and when it was dried. Ziploc bags, or any glass containers that seal and have a large open neck will work fine too.

Choose the best Oil you can get. Olive Oil's properties are well documented and known for their medicinal benefits. The best Olive Oils are usually from the Mediterranean countries, and the labels on the containers will often be helpful in determining the best choices. Extra Virgin Olive Oils are generally used as the best choice for perfect taste and highest quality.

Careful Cleaning and Completely Drying of the Bottles that you choose to use is the next important step. Whether you use the Olive Oil container or a new empty Bottle, you need to carefully and completely clean and dry them. You will also want to remove any labeling, if you are using a commercial Olive Oil Bottle, so that you can have a complete transparent area for your own Labeling, and view of your Herbals. If you choose the commercial bottle, you may need to remove the 'anti-drip' device by using a knife to pull it away from the edge of the bottle's mouth, and popping it out for later replacement and use. Dishwashers clean bottles well, with the bottles placed open mouths down, and allowing to run thru normal cleaning and drying cycle. Use the original cap, as well as the 'anti-drip' device, to close the bottle at the end of the process.

Selecting the Herbs to be used, and Inserting them into the Oils is your next step. Selecting your most Perfect Stems and Leaves, you will need to "prune" them to a size that is 1/4" smaller than the distance from the bottom of the bottle to the beginning of the neck. Generally it is best to select only one or two kinds of Herbs to assure that you choose the combination of a pleasing result of aromas. Be careful with this step, as our final results are difficult to predict. Next, one or two dried seeds of White Pepper can produce a mild spicy taste. You may want to try to make a few bottles of Flavored Oils at the same time to make all this preparation time worthwhile.

Inserting the Herbs are the most tricky, but they are quite flexible if you treat them gently, they should not break or spoil your fun. A few Rules that you might want to follow are ----Avoid very large branches or stems that would require difficult insertion into the bottle, and, first insert the larger ones, and then insert the thinner and stiffer. If your larger branch is 'fuller', it should be inserted first. When inserting the bigger branches, insertion should be "gently", with the leaves pressed against the stem, and started with the insertion of it's lower section (where the bigger leaves are), and the leaves will tend to follow while passing thru the neck of the bottle. Then gently guide the whole branch thru the mouth of the bottle until it falls down into it. Do the same with the next (thinner) Herb.

Finally, you can try to arrange the Herbs inside the bottle by tapping and using a tweezer, if necessary.

Filling the Bottle with Oil is the next step. Using a clean small funnel, slowly pour the Oil into the bottle until the level reaches the beginning of the neck of the bottle. If the "pruning" of the stems was the right size, they will be floating with about 1/4" herb free oil at the bottom of the bottle. Wait for the Oil to stop flowing form the funnel into the bottle and remove it. Clean any oil that may have run around mouth and onto the outside of the bottle with a Clean Dry Paper Towel. End the process by reinserting the "anti-drip" device into the mouth of the bottle, and firmly closing with the original screw cap, if using this type of bottle.