Dry Woodruff: This Keeps The Strong Aroma

Drying woodruff: Here’s how

The woodruff is a special plant. In contrast to many other herbs or medicinal plants, woodruff only develops its sweet and spicy taste intensively in dried form.

• The leaves of the woodruff are particularly rich in aromas.
• To dry, it is best to bundle the forest plant into a small bouquet and hang it upside down in a dry place in your apartment or house. Leave the woodruff hanging there for several weeks. A positive side effect: while the plant dries, it gives off a pleasant scent in the room.
• If you don’t have that much time before you want to use the woodruff – for example for a fresh May punch – let the leaves spread out on a kitchen towel and wilt for a few hours.
• Alternatively, you can also put the woodruff briefly in the freezer.
• You should not use the plant fresh. If consumed in excess, the coumarin contained in the leaves can lead to mild poisoning with nausea and even liver damage. On the other hand, during drying or preservation, the coumarin is broken down. The woodruff is less poisonous and thus more digestible.
• Tip: If you harvest the woodruff in the flowering period between April and May, the coumarin content in the leaves increases. It is, therefore, better to harvest woodruff outside of the flowering period. The forest plant can be picked all year round.