If you have an abundance of fresh herbs, one of my favorite things to make are herb-infused salts. You can use a wide variety of salts and just about any herbs you enjoy. By blending them together, the herbs release their natural oils and the salt absorbs them. The flavored salts are great for finishing- sprinkle on vegetables, grilled meats, potatoes and fries, and more. You use them in your kitchen, just like you would any normal salt, it just gives a little added punch of flavor and a gorgeous color I love making these in the summer time when herbs are abundant, and using them throughout the year. They also make terrific homemade gifts!
Ingredients and Equipment Needed
- Salt – You can do this with any salt, really, but I recommend coarse blends for finishing. Coarse salt also holds up well to blending and processing. Kosher salt and coarse sea salt are great options. I’ve also made this with finer blends of Hawaiian pink salt with good success, though keep in mind pink salt will affect the finished color. I would however avoid plain table salt.
- Herbs – This process will work with most any herb. Some are more concentrated and flavorful when dried (like rosemary). You can use one herb, or a blend of several.
- Additional Flavors – In addition to fresh herbs, you can also include things like fresh garlic, ginger, citrus peel, or chili flakes. See info box below for more info.
- Food Processor – I have found best results with a food processor. I’ve also made herb salts in my high-powered Blendtec blender. If using a blender, my experience was that it pulverized the salt to almost a powder. If you’re going to use a blender, I suggest blending the herbs as much as you can first, and then adding only half the salt and blending just enough. Stir in the additional salt by hand.
How to make herb flavored salts
Full recipe card with quantities provided further down the page.
- Wash and thoroughly dry herbs before using.
- Remove herb leaves from stems and add to food processor. Process until finely chopped.
- Add salt and process again, paying attention to blend well but not over-process salt. If using coarse salt, you shouldn’t have a problem.
- Scrape salt mixture onto a parchment lined tray (a rimmed baking sheet works great). Use hands (I prefer to wear food safe gloves) to massage salt to further release oils and break up clumps.
- Spread salt mixture out into a single layer and set in a safe place for 1-3 days to dry, gently tossing occasionally.
- Make sure your herb salts are completely dry and then store in an airtight container.
How to add additional fresh flavors
Herbs and salt are delicious on their own, but you can also add some additional flavors, if desired. For all of these additions, add them in with the herbs so they get blended into the mixture.
- Citrus zest – Lemon, lime, and orange are all lovely flavors to add. Use a microplane zester to remove zest, if you use a normal cheese grater or knife, you will likely include the bitter pith. A microplane will remove just the peel, which contains the flavored oils.
- Fresh Ginger – Instead of chopping ginger, which will result in large chunks that take a long time to dry, use a fine-hole grater or microplane.
- Garlic – For fresh garlic use a garlic press to very finely process the garlic before blending. Garlic can take a little longer to dry out so you might need to air dry your salt a little longer if you decide. You could also simply add garlic powder or granulated dry garlic to your finished herb salt.
- Chili Flakes – For a kick, you might enjoy chili flakes in your herb salt. You can stir whole dry chili flakes into your finished mixture, or you can process the chili flakes with the herbs and salt to release more of the spicy oils and disperse the flecks of chili flakes.
Storage Info
Dried herb salts will last for quite a long time, though dried herbs lose potency over time. For best results, store in an airtight container and use within one year.
Frequently Asked Questions
No! It’s a great starting point. If you’d like your mixture to be more herbs and less salt (more like a seasoning blend, as opposed to a straight-salt) then you can feel free to do mostly herbs and a little salt.
Yes! You can also use a blender, just be careful as a high speed blender may turn your salt to powder. To combat this, I suggest blending only half the salt with the herbs and stirring in the rest by hand. You could also finely mince your herbs by hand and just massage the mixture together thoroughly.
I haven’t made an herb salt I haven’t liked! A mix of rosemary, basil, oregano and thyme makes a good well rounded herb blend. Chive-Lemon is delicious, as is basil with orange zest and ginger. Rosemary and garlic is a favorite. You can’t go wrong!
Since dried herbs take up very little volume once dried, you can measure pretty closely to what a recipe calls for and add more to taste, if needed. Keep in mind that these salts are best for finishing though, which means sprinkled on top of things for a little extra flavor and color.
Fresh Herb Infused Salt
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh herbs loosely packed
- 1 cup coarse salt
Instructions
- Wash and thoroughly dry herbs before using. Remove herb leaves from stems and add to food processor. Process until finely chopped.
- Add salt and process again, paying attention to blend well but not over-process salt. If using coarse salt, you shouldn't have a problem.
- Scrape salt mixture onto a parchment lined tray or rimmed baking sheet. Use hands (I prefer to wear food safe gloves) to massage salt to further release oils and break up clumps.
- Spread salt mixture out into a single layer and set in a safe place for 1-3 days to dry, gently tossing occasionally. Make sure your mixture is completely dry and then store in an airtight container.
Notes
- Salt – You can do this with any salt, really, but I recommend coarse blends for finishing. Coarse salt also holds up well to blending and processing. Kosher salt and coarse sea salt are great options. I’ve also made this with finer blends of Hawaiian pink salt with good success. I would however avoid plain table salt.
- Herbs – This process will work with most any herb. Some are more concentrated and flavorful when dried. You can use one herb, or a blend of several. Rosemary is probably my favorite and I’ve also made delicious blends combining it with with oregano, basil, and thyme.
- Additional Flavors – In addition to fresh herbs, you can also include things like fresh garlic, ginger, citrus peel, or chili flakes. See below for more info.
- Food Processor – I have found best results with a food processor. I’ve also made herb salts in my high-powered Blendtec blender. If using a blender, my experience was that it pulverized the salt to almost a powder. If you’re going to use a blender, I suggest blending the herbs as much as you can first, and then adding only half the salt and blending just enough. Stir in the additional salt by hand.
- Citrus zest – Lemon, lime, and orange are all lovely flavors to add. Use a microplane zester to remove zest, if you use a normal cheese grater or knife, you will likely include the bitter pith. A microplane will remove just the peel, which contains the flavored oils.
- Fresh Ginger – Instead of chopping ginger, which will result in large chunks that take a long time to dry, use a fine-hole grater or microplane.
- Garlic – For fresh garlic use a garlic press to very finely process the garlic before blending. Garlic can take a little longer to dry out so you might need to air dry your salt a little longer if you decide. You could also simply add garlic powder or granulated dry garlic to your finished herb salt.
- Chili Flakes – For a kick, you might enjoy chili flakes in your herb salt. You can stir whole dry chili flakes into your finished mixture, or you can process the chili flakes with the herbs and salt to release more of the spicy oils and disperse the flecks of chili flakes.
Questions & Reviews
Hi,
Do you ever sell yours🥰
I don’t sell them, so sorry!
Could you tell me the ratio of the lemon chive salt?
Hi Lisa, I made the recipe as written and added the zest from 2 lemons. Hope that helps!
Thank you.
I have a ton of fresh basil. How would I dry it to make basil salt? Is that even a thing?
Just follow the tutorial as written with basil!
Does the fresh basil need to be bone dried completely or should it just be dried from after washing it?
The basil should be fresh (as in not dried basil leaves). You just want to pat it dry after washing so you’re not introducing more liquid into the recipe.