Homemade Basil Salt: One of the Easiest Ways to Preserve Fresh Basil
Fresh basil, salt, and a little time—that’s pretty much it.
If you’ve ever grown basil, you know there are approximately two stages:
I hope this basil grows.
And then:
What on earth am I going to do with all this basil?
Basil salt is one of my favorite answers to the second problem.
It doesn’t require canning. It doesn’t take up freezer space. And instead of watching perfectly good basil slowly turn sad
in the refrigerator while I promise myself I’ll use it tomorrow, I can turn a big handful into something we’ll use for months.
Even better: it’s ridiculously simple.
What Is Basil Salt?
Exactly what it sounds like. Fresh basil is combined with salt, dried completely, and then stored as a seasoned salt.
As the basil dries with the salt, you’re essentially capturing some of that fresh herb flavor in something that’s incredibly easy to grab when you’re cooking.
I use it anywhere basil and salt would already make sense—pasta, vegetables, chicken, potatoes, sauces, soups, and plenty of other things depending on what we’re making.
What You’ll Need
For example:
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 cup salt**
- Food processor
- Baking sheet or dehydrator tray
- Airtight jar for storage
**The recipe I was following calls for course salt but I used sea salt and it still turned out great.
You don’t need beautiful basil leaves for this, either. This is a great place to use perfectly good leaves that aren’t necessarily pretty enough to garnish something.
How I Make Basil Salt
First, remove the basil leaves from the stems and wash them if needed.
The important part comes next:
Get them dry.
You’re trying to remove moisture eventually, so starting with dripping-wet basil isn’t doing yourself any favors. I let mine dry thoroughly before moving on.
First, remove the basil leaves from the stems and wash them if needed. The important part comes next: Get them dry.
You’re trying to remove moisture eventually, so starting with dripping-wet basil isn’t doing yourself any favors. I let mine dry thoroughly before moving on.
Add the basil and salt to a food processor and pulse until the basil is finely chopped and evenly distributed throughout the salt. At this point, the mixture will be damp and very green.
Now it’s time to dry it.
Drying the Basil Salt
Spread the basil salt onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 250°F for 25 minutes. Whether you’re using a dehydrator or another appropriate drying method, the goal is the same: there should be no remaining moisture before you store it. That being said, keep an eye on it—the goal is to dry the moisture out without letting the basil turn brown or lose too much of its color.
Once completely dry, the salt may have clumped together. That’s okay.
Give it another quick pulse in the food processor—or break it apart however you prefer—until it reaches the texture you want. Then transfer it to an airtight container.
And that’s it.
You turned a pile of fresh basil into something that takes up approximately one jar in the pantry.
My kind of preserving.
How I Use Basil Salt
This is less of a specialty ingredient in our kitchen and more of a “this could use something” ingredient.
But basil salt fills a different little niche.
It’s shelf-friendly, useful, easy to make, and doesn’t require me to find room for one more container in an already-questionable freezer situation.
Most importantly, we actually use it.
That’s become one of my biggest rules for preserving food. I’m not interested in putting something up simply because I can. I want to preserve the things our family will actually eat.
Try it on:
– Roasted vegetables
– Potatoes
– Pasta
– Chicken
– Eggs
– Tomato dishes
– Homemade bread or focaccia
– Soups
– Sauces
– Popcorn, if you’re feeling adventurous
Just remember that this is still salt. If you’re using basil salt in a recipe, account for it when adding any additional salt.
Why I Like This Method
There are plenty of ways to preserve basil, and I don’t think there’s one magical “correct” way. I freeze some. I turn plenty into pesto. And I’ll happily use it fresh for as long as the garden keeps giving it to me.
But basil salt fills a different little niche.
It’s shelf-friendly, useful, easy to make, and doesn’t require me to find room for one more container in an already-questionable freezer situation.
Most importantly, we actually use it.
That’s become one of my biggest rules for preserving food. I’m not interested in putting something up simply because I can. I want to preserve the things our family will actually eat
Have More Basil?
This basil salt was part of a much bigger harvest from our garden.
→ See the Basil Harvest
And if you’ve still got basil to use:
→ Homemade Basil Pesto + How I Freeze It
Because apparently the answer to a giant basil plant is not one recipe.
It’s a plan of attack.
Or, around here, something resembling one.
Growing as we go.