The Dangers Of Drying Herbs In Your Microwave
For most people, acquiring herbs involves going to the store and purchasing them. This is usually the easiest way to acquire them, but it also provides a false sense about the complexities of maintaining the benefits of herbs. That is to say, before the herbs are packaged in mass quantities and then shipped out to stores, there is a process of drying involved that eliminates the various moistures that may undermine the benefits of the herbs as well as making them more susceptible to spoilage on the shelves. Of course, people who grow their own herbs know better. Often, they undertake the process of drying herbs in their own microwave ovens.
While some may think that drying herbs in a microwave it effective, others know the damage it causes to the herbs. Perhaps some believe the herbs will explode in the microwave oven in the same manner the wet poodle exploded in the silly yet prominently retold urban legend tale. (Then again, if you cook food too long in a microwave it has the potential to explode so the same may happen to herbs if one is not careful) But this is not the most damaging aspect of drying the herbs in a microwave. Ultimately, if one is a growing one’s own herbs, there will be a need to dry the herbs in order to preserve them and the best way to do this is to employ methods other than drying the herbs in a microwave.
The Damage Caused By Drying Herbs in Microwave Ovens
If you wish to preserve herbs you are doing so because you wish to utilize the herbs at a later time. Now, if an individual dries the herbs in a manner that undermines the benefits of the herbs, then the method of drying needs to be altered. When it comes to using a microwave oven, the potential for damaging the actual herbs runs very high.
Probably the greatest danger in drying herbs in microwave ovens in the fact that often the herbs do not so much dry as they cook. Needless to say, this is not a method one would prefer to employ because it will ruin the quality of the herbs and make their storage impossible. If one is looking to dry the herbs, then it may be best to dry the herbs in a conventional oven or perhaps even air-dry them. While some have opted to undertake the process of drying herbs in microwave ovens, great care must be taken to avert the potential to drain the herbs of their medicinal and culinary purposes.
