How To Harvest And Preserve Herbs From A Home Garden For Cocktails
Tending to a small kitchen garden at home can be an interesting prospect for anyone who has a home bar and is involved in mastering the art of blending drinks. This is because aromatic herbs can be grown and nurtured in this garden to harvest readily for adding to cocktails.
As well, these organically grown herbs can be preserved in different ways by extracting maximum flavour out of them so they can be added to cocktail blends in the form of infused syrups or flavoured spirits.
However, harvesting and preserving herbs that are brought indoors from one’s garden requires a tad bit of skill. It is essential to pluck the leaves of different plants like mint, basil and sage properly in order to encourage the sprouting of new blossoms.
And once these plants are brought indoors after harvesting, they need to be washed thoroughly before extracting their essence by using different techniques.
Here are some of the ways in which herbs can be harvested from one’s home garden and preserved for use in homemade cocktails:
Harvesting Time
One of the most imperative skills for a gardening enthusiast is to understand when plants ought to be harvested. Once shrubs like mint or lemongrass have entirely covered the pots or beds in which they are cultivated, only then can they be plucked.
By this time, the plants will have grown appropriately and will carry a vibrant and ripe look. Harvest shrubs in the morning after all the dew has dried but the sun is still soft.
This will ensure that leaves contain potent essential oils in large proportions rendering robust aromas and flavours to the plucked produce.
Harvesting Techniques
Use garden shears or shears used for pruning to snip herbs gently. Avoid pulling or tearing them as this can run the risk of uprooting the small plants by their roots. Cut the herbs just ahead of the edge and leave a little bit of green on the plant to encourage the growth of newer leaves.
Make sure hardy herbs like mint are harvested regularly because these plants have a better chance of growing strongly the more they are harvested. Use shears to cut only about a third of the plant to ensure good shrub health.
Herb Infusions
Once the plants are brought indoors upon harvesting, the next step is to turn them into flavourful herbal infusions which can be preserved for making cocktail blends. Wash herbs like mint, thyme, rosemary, sage and others.
For making simple syrups, add the chosen herbs to sugar and water and create a flavourful infusion. Next, strain the mix and let the syrup cool properly before bottling and sealing so it can be brought out for making drinks. Syrups ensure that a more concentrated flavour of the herbs seeps into cocktails giving them more depth.
Dried Herbs As Garnishes
Another way to preserve harvested herbs for incorporating them into cocktails is to dehydrate them. Remove all the moisture from harvested mint, basil and thyme using a food dehydrator or by placing them in the oven so what is left behind are leaves that can be stored in dry mason jars to be brought out as garnishes for adorning cocktails.
Dried herbs bring a slightly more aesthetic look into one’s presentation and infuse potent flavours in the drinks. They can be employed in the making of tinctures or syrups too which build flavours in cocktails.
Frozen Herbs For Flavour
One of the easiest methods of freezing harvested herbs is in the form of ice. Take an ice cube tray and place basil or rosemary leaves inside before topping the blocks off with water.
Freeze this herby ice and bring it out whenever required as a garnish and an added flavour component in cocktails. It is also possible to chop the herbs before freezing so their oils are released into the ice trays.
Another way to make frozen herbs is to freeze whole leaves on a baking sheet to preserve flavour and aroma. The leaves can be muddled into different cocktails like mojitos and flavoured margaritas.
Drink responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
