• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Prairie Homestead

Homesteading | Self Sufficient Living | Living off the Land

  • Home
  • About
  • Start Here
  • Blog
    • Latest Posts
    • Start a Homestead
    • Cook From-Scratch
    • Do It Yourself
    • Grow Food
  • Podcast
  • Shop
    • The Self-Funded Homestead
    • The Prairie Homestead Cookbook
    • Heritage Cooking Crash Course
    • Canning Made Easy Course
    • Homestead Swag!
    • Homesteading Supplies
    • Homestead Mentorship
    • Old-Fashioned on Purpose Planner

47 Comments | Jill Winger |    Last Updated: June 5, 2020

Homemade Herb Salt Recipe

Jump to Recipe

homemade herb salt recipe

Nothing, and I mean NOTHING…

Compares to the flavors of fresh herbs picked footsteps from your door. This morning I tip-toed out on my front deck to pick fresh sage leaves for the pork chop recipe I was putting in the crockpot, and momentarily mourned the fact I can’t enjoy those flavors all year long…

The first thing I’m doing once our home addition project is complete is setting up some windowsill herb gardens so we have fresh herbs all year long. (Previously, my south-facing windows have not been conducive to growing stuff…)

Herbs seem to either be feast or famine. I either have an obscene amount of fresh parsley, or none all all. There are plenty of different ways to preserve fresh herbs for later, but I recently stumbled upon a technique I hadn’t previously used (I know, I must live under a rock, huh?)

homemade herb salt recipe

Preserving herbs in salt is an old method that works beautifully for two reasons:

a) it’s fast and easy

b) it’s delicious

What more do you need? Although I’ll still probably dry my herbs or save them in oil, this is officially my new favorite way to preserve herbs.

homemade herb salt recipe

The Best Herbs for Herb Salt

Honestly? Anything will work. My herb salt is pretty heavy on the parsley, because I have parsley coming out my ears, but I also toss in handfuls of whatever else I have growing. Just think about the herbs you like to eat together, and make your custom herb salt blends according to what your palate prefers. Here are a few good options, but the sky’s the limit:

  • Parsley
  • Dill
  • Mint
  • Oregano
  • Sage
  • Thyme
  • Cilantro
  • Rosemary
  • Basil

homemade herb salt recipe

Homemade Herb Salt Recipe

  • 3 loosely-packed cups of fresh herbs of your choice (see list above)
  • 1/2 cup coarse salt (I use and love this one)

Wash the herbs and remove coarse stems and any discolored leaves. Dry thoroughly.

Place the herbs and salt in a food processor and pulse until you have a coarse grind. Be careful not to make a paste or puree, though.

homemade herb salt recipe

Don’t want to use a food processor? No worries. Simply grab your knife and cutting board and go crazy. Coarsely chop the leaves, then add the salt on top and continue to chop the salt/herbs together until you have a coarse, uniform mixture.

Place the herb mixture in a glass jar, and place in the fridge for 7-14 days to let the flavors meld. Give it a shake every day or so.

Store in the fridge. The salt in this recipe acts as a preservative, so your herbs should last 6 months, or even longer.

Use your homemade herb salt in any recipes that would benefit from an extra punch. Obviously, it is very salty, so I would start by using it 1:1 for the salt in your recipes. Rub it on roasts, sprinkle it in stews, slather it on your chickens before roasting them… You get the idea!

homemade herb salt recipe

Homemade Herb Salt Recipe Notes:

  • Use coarse sea salt, kosher salt, or canning/pickling salt for this recipe. This is the coarse sea salt I use and love (affiliate link). PLUS, for a limited time, use my code HOMESTEAD for 15% off your total order at Redmond’s salt.
  • There are many different techniques to make homemade herb salt. Some folks layer whole herbs in salt, some folks dry the mixture before jarring it, etc. I like this method because it’s fast and easy, but feel free to experiment.
Print

Homemade Herb Salt Recipe

  • Author: The Prairie Homestead
  • Category: Seasoning

Ingredients

  • 3 loosely-packed cups of fresh herbs of your choice. Parsely, oregano, basil, mint, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, and/or dill are all great choice.
  • 1/2 cup coarse salt (like this)

Instructions

  1. Wash the herbs and remove coarse stems and any discolored leaves. Dry thoroughly.
  2. Place the herbs and salt in a food processor and pulse until you have a coarse grind. Be careful not to make a paste or puree, though.
  3. Don’t want to use a food processor? No worries. Simply grab your knife and cutting board and go crazy. Coarsely chop the leaves, then add the salt on top and continue to chop the salt/herbs together until you have a coarse, uniform mixture.
  4. Place the herb mixture in a glass jar, and place in the fridge for 7-14 days to let the flavors meld. Give it a shake every day or so.
  5. The salt in this recipe acts as a preservative, so your herbs should last 6 months, or even longer.
  6. Use your homemade herb salt in any recipes that would benefit from an extra punch. Rub it on roasts, sprinkle it in stews, slather it on your chickens before roasting them… You get the idea!

 

47 Comments | Pantry Staples, Preserving the Harvest

Learn to Cook Like a Farmer!

Get my best tips & recipes for transforming your kitchen into a farmstyle kitchen, no matter where you live! Enter your best email for instant access>>

You may also like these posts...

peach butter recipeOld-Fashioned Peach Butter RecipeHow to Make Homemade BreadcrumbsHow to Can Dry Beansorganic garden harvest basketHow to Start Buying Local Food

Reader Interactions

47 Comments

  1. Alena says

    July 24, 2015 at 9:33 am

    Would you keep this in the fridge for the 6 months, or can it then go into the cupboard?

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 25, 2015 at 10:18 am

      Store it in the fridge for the whole time. 🙂

      reply to comment
  2. Christina says

    July 25, 2015 at 8:01 pm

    Jill, you never cease to amaze me! You are a wealth of knowledge for this fledgling homesteader. Going to try this with my own abundance of parsley. What’s your secret with growing sage? I always kill it and never grow the plant bigger than when i bought it.
    Thanks for the recipe!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 28, 2015 at 3:47 pm

      Well, I wish I had some magic sage tips, but I just usually buy the seedling and stick it in my planter, hehe. It doesn’t grow as big as my parsley, but does OK. Now my cilantro, is a different story. Can’t seem to keep that stuff alive!

      reply to comment
      • Christina says

        July 29, 2015 at 9:06 am

        sage does very well for me. I grow from seed in hanging baskets in a part sun area. I probably err on the side of less watering because I always forget the baskets lol. This idea of the herbs in salt is brilliant. I have way too much basil sage and oregano right now so I will make some up today.
        Thanks!

        reply to comment
        • Sam Sheehan says

          December 5, 2017 at 5:48 am

          my mom has a sage plant that keeps coming back every year. It’s nearly knee high and 3-4 ft around. She tried to transplant it and nearly killed it. It likes the crappy soil and being in front of a south facing brick wall in a sheltered nook here in Ontario.

          reply to comment
      • MaryAnn Bruce says

        August 15, 2020 at 6:23 am

        Me neither! Always Bolts! Never makes nice leaves! Sun OR Shade !! ?

        reply to comment
    • Hannah says

      August 17, 2020 at 10:49 am

      Always grow herbs from seed. Plants in the store aren’t hearty to produce. My cousin is a arborist and garden guru and told me this and changed my herb game. I think having them from seed they are acclimated to our weather (temp, winds, rain, shade/sun) where plants were in optimum growing environment from the companies and when they get put in our yards with different environments I don’t think they grow as well. Just my opinion I don’t have any science to back it up.

      reply to comment
  3. michelle short says

    July 27, 2015 at 6:34 am

    I have had an herb garden for years. How have I never made this? I am going to try it ASAP, probably today! You are right about herbs being feast or famine. Thanks for the great post!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 28, 2015 at 3:46 pm

      I know– I missed it too, until now!

      reply to comment
  4. Kerri says

    July 27, 2015 at 9:39 pm

    I am Acadian by heritage and this is a typical Acadian recipe- known around here as “Herbes Salées”, though I have never made my own as I am just learning about different herbs now and how to grow them. I just buy this in jars from the grocery store. 🙂 Nice to know ‘how-to’!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 28, 2015 at 3:46 pm

      Very cool to know its “real” name! 🙂

      reply to comment
    • Tina says

      July 18, 2020 at 2:52 am

      Hi Kerri! I have recently read a cookbook about Acadian food called, ” Pantry and Palate: Remembering and rediscovering Acadian Food” By Simon Thibault. Although I am not Acadian myself, I do very much love many of the recipes! I noticed one of the recipes was for salted green onions (called Oignons sal^ees). As I am a (newly) avid herb gardener, i wanted to know more about salt preservation for herbs and that is why I happened upon this wonderful website! I have since learned from my research (as I am a writer, or wanna be writer lol), that humans have been preserving many fresh herbs, vegetables and meat with salt, for hundreds of years now! And to boot, I’ve also learned about the interesting history of salt itself! My first interest in salt preservation came from re-reading the Little House on the Prairie books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was amazed by how they learned to preserve fresh food way back in the late 1800’s. Anyway, sorry I rambled on so much, but this cookbook, which I’m looking at right now, has some really wonderful recipes (which many include the salted green onions). I am especially thinking about trying/making Rappie Pie.

      reply to comment
  5. Leslie Stevens says

    July 29, 2015 at 8:24 am

    Hey Jill, when your preserving your herbs in oil are you talking about just sticking them in a jar with olive oil? I have been just plain old drying them chopping them and storing in pantry to use all winter. Is that ok or am I poisoning my family….lol
    P.S. I am new to your site and love it, prefect for my life style and our farm.

    Thanks for all the great info!!~
    Leslie

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:41 am

      Yes, you can put them in olive oil and I’ve tried freezing them in ice cube trays in the oil. Kinda handy. But drying them is totally fine, too!

      reply to comment
  6. Barb says

    July 29, 2015 at 8:28 am

    Jill, I love this idea and wish I’d known about it sooner. Thank you for an excellent tip. I also wish I could share all my sage with you and your readers, as it is taking over whole swaths of my yard. No secret to growing sage except neglect!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:42 am

      I’ll trade you some of your sage for my parsley! 😉

      reply to comment
  7. Mid says

    July 29, 2015 at 8:54 am

    Jill, why, if the salt is a preservative, does it need to be in the fridge? If one dried the herbs first, and then mixed w/salt, could it go in the pantry/cupboard?

    Thank you for all your information!!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:43 am

      If you dried the herbs first, you wouldn’t really need to mix it with the salt.

      There are methods that have you mix the minced herbs and salt together, then dry on a cookie sheet. Since ALL the moisture is removed that way, you can store that type of herb salt in the pantry. However, since these are fresh herbs with some moisture still in them, it’s best to keep them in the fridge.

      reply to comment
      • Hannah says

        November 11, 2016 at 8:43 am

        Loving the info! I wanted to ask, have you ever experienced salt preserved this way go bad because it was stored in the cupboard?

        Thanks in advance.

        reply to comment
  8. Nancy says

    July 29, 2015 at 11:15 am

    Wow!
    I also never new of this way to preserve herbs! I’m going out back and start picking!
    Thank you Jill!

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:39 am

      Enjoy Nancy!

      reply to comment
  9. Kimberly says

    July 29, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    Jill you are truly an inspiration to many! I absolutely love this idea of preserving my herbs and I too must live under a rock because it’s the first I’ve heard. Thanks for your work, information and passion for life on a homestead!

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:39 am

      Don’t worry Kimberly– I had been missing the boat on it, too! 🙂

      reply to comment
      • MaryAnn says

        July 3, 2019 at 9:34 am

        Hi Jill…
        Can chives be preserved in this manner with the salt. Love chives. This is a great idea as here in WI my herbs freeze out during the winter and I plant new each spring….so no re-occuring new plants in spring.

        reply to comment
        • Michèle says

          May 17, 2020 at 4:50 am

          Oh yes you can! I am Acadian and my grandma would preserve her chives this way. During the summer she would add her parsley then very tiny chopped carrots when they would become ready in the garden. Now that she’s gone I find myself reading these blogs to try and reproduce what I saw her make for years but I sadly never asked her for tips.

          reply to comment
  10. Jessleen says

    July 29, 2015 at 2:50 pm

    I like the idea of preserving in salt. It set me to thinking that, since we count on sugar to preserve preserves, could we use coarse sugar to preserve the “sweet” herbs/spices? What do you think? I mean other than “who is this crazy old woman?”.

    reply to comment
    • Jill Winger says

      July 30, 2015 at 8:38 am

      Hmmm… interesting idea! I know the salt works because of it’s specific preservative properties, and not sure sugar would quite have the same action. But, would be interesting to experiment!

      reply to comment
  11. Karen says

    July 30, 2015 at 8:46 am

    My parsley has already gone to seed. I tried drying in the freezer, hanging it upside down, and drying it in a paper bag with holes in it. I failed miserably on all accounts. Have to limit salt intake, soooo, any other suggestions?

    reply to comment
    • Anita says

      August 9, 2015 at 9:59 pm

      Hi Karen,
      I dry all of my herbs – oregano, marjoram, sage, tarragon, rosemary, parsley, thyme, etc, this way: (If possible, cut herbs when most flavorful.) Wash selected herbs gently (attached to their stems) in sink or large basin filled with water. Remove and let drain in collander, or, wrap in toweling to blot away most of water. Set up a drying area on a table by spreading a sheet or terry toweling over plastic (to protect table from moisture). Lay out the herbs thinly so that each stem can dry individually. Depending on the humidity and temperature of the room, this could take a few days or up to 2 weeks. When herbs are completely dry and brittle, store in large plastic food storage bags and label. To use: take out several dried stems and strip leaves into a bowl. Store the leaves in a tightly lidded jar in cupboard for everyday use. The herbs left whole, on their stems, will keep their flavor much longer, up to 2 years.

      reply to comment
    • Mike64Denver says

      August 11, 2016 at 7:11 pm

      You can take more salt. I make sole water from naturally processed Mediterranean and Himalayan salt. Then I put 50 ml of sole in a quart of water and wait 1 day for the sole to structure the water. I drink 3 quarts a day. That is 36 grams of salt. The sole changes salt and water into a super natural miracle. Study sole water, Arizona magnetite sand, and ormus.

      reply to comment
  12. Caren White says

    August 9, 2015 at 6:54 pm

    Thanks! I’m always looking for ways to preserve the bounty from my herb garden.

    reply to comment
  13. Lee Hoy says

    March 8, 2017 at 8:04 am

    I also discovered the herb salt idea last year. However, after mixing I dehydrate the herb mix. That way it can stay on the counter. Mold has not been a problem.

    ★★★★

    reply to comment
    • Gayle says

      August 29, 2017 at 7:03 pm

      How long do you dehydrate

      reply to comment
  14. Ammie joseph says

    March 8, 2017 at 4:48 pm

    Thanks,Thanks for salt and fresh herbs,this will do well with my parsley because i have it growing all over the place. I have a question? Can i use sugar and mint like this because i have mint all over the place. Thanks for all your information.YOU ROCK GIRL LOL

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
  15. Skelly Shelly says

    March 9, 2017 at 12:21 pm

    Guess what I’ll be doing tonight with the TONS of parsley (and rosemary, dill, sage, cilantro, basil, etc.) I have! I bet this is great and what a wonderful way to preserve those delicious herbs from the garden. This could even make a cute gift idea in the right packaging. Thank you!

    reply to comment
  16. Carole MacIntyre says

    November 7, 2017 at 4:58 pm

    My friend makes this all the time. She is from Quebec and grew up doing this her whole life. She puts carrot in hers too. What do you think? I see recipes where a clove of garlic is added, also lemon zest sometimes.

    reply to comment
  17. Anel says

    November 26, 2017 at 12:10 pm

    Regarding using sugar. I’ve made some Rose petal sugar, Lavender sugar, Mint sugar, Lemon zest sugar and Orange peel sugar this past weekend, as a fun project with my 4year old daughter. I dry the specific herb or fruit with my hydrator and add to a cup and a half of sugar. You can mix a powder colourant as well to make it all pretty and store it in a glass jar. Shake for a few days and leave for about 2weeks for the fragrance to set in. Wonderful in making ice teas,cookies,scones,cake,anything that takes sugar.

    reply to comment
  18. Ginger Madore says

    June 13, 2018 at 6:29 am

    Thank you for posting this recipe. The minute I saw this I had to read your article. My mother-in-law used to talk of Salted Herbs and she said it was a key ingredient in Pea Soup, she called “Herbs de Sole” a Canadian French term I imagine. I have been growing my own herbs for years and am always looking for interesting ways to preserve them for winter use.

    ★★★★★

    reply to comment
  19. Anne H says

    January 27, 2019 at 10:17 pm

    Ok, so I recently got into the whole aerogarden thing. I have herbs coming up like crazy (in January no less!) and looked at Pinterest for some ideas on how to preserve them. Then I saw the salt method and was actually going to write to you and see what you thought about it and, look here, you already wrote about it, years ago! Lol You are my go to person for all things homesteading. Thank you!!

    reply to comment
  20. Jenn says

    August 3, 2019 at 10:54 pm

    I add in lemon zest too and dry the whole mixture then put it in a sprinkle jar for veggies, proteins… anything really. So delish!

    reply to comment

Trackbacks

  1. Homemade Herb Salt Recipe – Info You Should Know says:
    May 7, 2017 at 7:56 am

    […] Homemade Herb Salt Recipe […]

    reply to comment
  2. Homemade Fresh Herb Salt | Homemade & Yummy says:
    June 9, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    […] There is no right or wrong method of doing this. It all boils down to personal preference. After all this research, I decided on a variation of the recipe I found on The Prairie Homestead. […]

    reply to comment
  3. How to Preserve Fresh Herbs in Olive Oil - Homesteading Alliance says:
    December 22, 2017 at 12:49 pm

    […] the garden. That means it’s high-priority to get their flavors preserved, stat. There are jars of homemade herb salt in my fridge, dried herbs in the pantry, and herb-packed olive oil cubes in the […]

    reply to comment
  4. Homemade Herbs de Provence Salt Recipe - The Homestead Garden says:
    February 17, 2018 at 6:46 pm

    […] I wondered if that was something you could do….and then I stumbled across Jill’s (from The Prairie Homestead) herb salt recipe. Her herb salt recipe uses FRESH herbs and salt. […]

    reply to comment
  5. 7 Types of Mineral Rich Salt (plus 2 Bonus) - Primal Edge Health says:
    March 29, 2018 at 3:03 pm

    […] Jill from The Prairie Homestead has a great tutorial on how to preserve fresh herbs in homemade herb salt. […]

    reply to comment
  6. CSA Week 2 - Day Spring Farm says:
    May 11, 2018 at 3:04 pm

    […] them in a sunny window to dry on a paper towel or even blend and mix with sea salt to preserve them (recipe here). The mustard greens are great sauteed with onion or chives and butter, then at the last minute I […]

    reply to comment

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

You have to agree to the comment policy.
Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Create a Homestead that Funds Itself!

Tell Me More!

Save time & money as you build your homestead with my FREE library of ebooks & resources!

— AS SEEN IN —

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube
  • Press & Media
  • Contact
  • Disclosure & Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Work with Me

Copyright © 2021 The Prairie Homestead  •  All rights reserved  •  Site Design by Emily White Designs