How to Dry Chives

Monsoon

Editor

posted on 10 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Drying chives is a great way to capture their fresh flavor to use in your cooking all year long. Often used like an herb, chives are the smallest species of the edible onions and add a mellow onion and grassy flavor to food, especially potato, egg and fish dishes. You can choose to dry them the more traditional way by hanging them, by oven drying them, or by using a food dehydrator.

Steps

Drying Chives By Hanging Them

Clean the chives. Rinse them under cold running water and remove any dead or withered chives. Pat them dry with a clean towel or kitchen towel until all moisture is removed.

Collect and bundle the chives. Gather the chives into loose bundles that you can easily hold in one hand. Secure the stems with kitchen twine or a rubber band, ensuring that they stay together securely without crushing them. Trim off the excess bottom and top portions of any stems that stick out if you want the bundles to look even. If you are cutting the chives from a garden, trim them early in the morning after the dew has dried when they are the healthiest and full of flavor.

Hang the bunches of chives upside down in a brown paper bag. Cut small holes or slits in the sides of the small paper bags to allow airflow. Gather the top of the bag together with string and hang the chives inside the bag from the top. The bag prevents dust from gathering on the chives and keeps sunlight from bleaching out their green color.

Store the bags of chives in a cool, dry location. Leave them for approximately two weeks until they are brittle to the touch. Check the chives every few days to ensure that no mold has developed on them.

Crumble the chives. Remove the chives from the bags and bundles and place them on parchment paper or a cutting board. Gently crumble the chives with your hands or chop them with a knife into small pieces.

Place the dried chives in an airtight container such as a glass mason jar and store out of direct sunlight.

Drying Chives in the Oven

Clean the chives. Rinse them under cold running water and remove any dead or withered chives. Pat them dry with a clean towel or kitchen towel until all moisture is removed.

Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature, ideally to 185˚ F (85˚ C) or lower.

Cut the chives into 1/4” inches (0.6 cm) with a knife or kitchen scissors.

Spread the chives on a shallow baking sheet. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper before spreading out the chives to keep them from scorching on the metal.

Heat the tray of chives in the oven for one to two hours. Check the chives periodically to make sure they do not burn. Remove them when they crumble easily between your fingers.

Gather up the parchment paper and funnel the chives into a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Seal the jar and store the chives in a cool location away from sunlight.

Drying Chives in a Food Dehydrator

Clean the chives. Rinse them under cold running water and remove any dead or withered chives. Pat them dry with a clean towel or kitchen towel until all moisture is removed.

Cut the chives into 1/4” inches (0.6 cm) with a knife or kitchen scissors.

Spread the chives evenly on the food dehydrator tray. Cover the chives with a screen (if included with the dehydrator) to prevent them from blowing around.

Heat the tray of chives in the dehydrator for roughly one hour at 90˚F (32˚C). Check the chives periodically and remove them when they crumble easily between your fingers.