Herbal Kitchen - A student's experience

[ithinknot57]

I had the kit and it totally rocked! I've made three variations that have worked well,but I must say she sure knows her stuff

[TheBeanHome]

@lenacolon sorry for the late response! You heat the oil for an hour but you want to avoid boiling.. You are just heating the oil so that that plant matter can release its oils into it. Yes, this is a short cut to the 6 weeks. Te 6 week version also has its benefits. Heat ages oil and makes them go rancid quicker, but Its really about what you plan to do with it when your done and how long you want to have it around. I do not believe that heating the oil makes it less potent either.

[lenacolon]

I have a question..did you just simmer the herbs in oil for an hour? Was that all you did to infuse them? Did you use any water? Because usually an herbal infused oil takes like 6 weeks with the herb in a jar with oil. But this way seems much faster. Do you know if it's less potent that way?

[greencatmusic]

sorry to be a nuisance but what does 'boil at low temperature' mean? I mean... boilng point is boiling point, isn't it? D'you mean simmer? Thanks for great site x

[TonksPlum]

Sorry for the late response. Boil at low temp was a very bad choice of words on my part. You don't want to boil, you simply want to heat at low temp. This is easier to do if you have a double boiler (kind used to heat chocolate etc).

Hope that clears things up :)

[TheBeanHome]

@greencatmusic I used poor wording back when I made this.. I was all new to working with herbs. I meant to say "heat at low temp".. you want to avoid heating up the oil so much that popping and sizzling sounds can be heard. The same care you would give chocolate when heating it.

[greencatmusic]

@TheBeanHome  cool. Thank you. Good luck. Will visit again. Much love. Lyn x

[AgentGhost]

this looks similar to my brownie recipe

[TonksPlum]

That must be a very special Brownie... :D

[HerbsareLife]

I was going to get this kit anyway. Since I'm a Master Herbalist. But, now I'm FOR SURE going to buy it. Just to have around and play with. :) Thanks for the video.

[apatte4975]

this is great i wanted to know first hand if this kit was worth it..

[TonksPlum]

Glad u enjoyed it :)

I have been making many other types of herbal medicine since this video (it sure brings me back!) but the salve is a staple in my home. Right now we have one for healing wounds, skin irritation etc. Another for sore muscles to use as a rub (my version of icy hot but milder and all natural).

We have saved a lot of money by simply using things we can find in our kitchen, grocery store or garden to help heal ourselves or simply stay healthy.

[Wadjitstar]

Very cool video. I'm just developing an interest in making my own herbal remedies, since I started using these types of remedies to heal myself of colds and other stuff. After experiencing how well they actually work, I've been curious about how I can go about making them myself. It doesn't seem to be that hard a thing at all. This video helped. Thanks!

[TonksPlum]

I am happy the video was useful. Yup, making your own herbal medicines is, for the most part, as simple as making a nutritional meal for yourself & your family. Since this video I have learned to make my own tinctures, lotions & even soap. Most importantly I have become a much better cook lol. At the end of the day, the best medicine is good nutrition. You will be surprised to learn how many "medicinal herbs" make great ingredients for cooking. I wish you the best on your learning journey! :)

[rudieriot]

you spelled medicine wrong

[TonksPlum]

woops! oh well.. next time... ;)

[wolfhunter99999]

I am going to ask my husband to buy me this kit for my birthday this month. I've been reading about herbs for awhile, but sometimes I feel like I have information overload. A kit would be so much more helpful for me.

[TonksPlum]

It's a great kit, I'm no longer shy about working with herbs. My only complaint is that there isn't a level 2 kit :)

The creator of learning herbs has chosen to expand into an education forum (with videos etc in the works) so until that's running, I'm finding myself looking for projects from other sources. My salve is almost all done & I'm happy to inform I can do it on my own from scratch now.

[borednow]

cool vid but you say boil in olive oil, youre not boiling the herbs, youre frying them (eventhough its at a low temperature) and thats why the herbs are chrunchy when you are straining them and not soft. you only boil in liquids like water, not oils

[TonksPlum]

I'm obviously not a good cook....! lol

Thanks for letting me know though, I'll say "put in a low heat" next time (which in my head means - don't go for the sizzle and pop sound of full on fry!.. well it makes sence in my head anyway lol) :D

[lugiarocks]

So did it work well?

[TonksPlum]

The salve? YES! :) Its awesome!!

The herbs in it are "comfrey, calendula, St. John's wort, and plantain". Each one of them has a special healing quality. The course book said I can make salves of just one herb if I want to also.. this way I can have specific uses and learn how the herbs work on their own. Thats one of my next projects once my tinkture is complete.

[LuvDIY911]

Nice video!

I also bought the Learning Herbs kit. Nice salve and the left over oil comes in handy, too. I've already made the tincture. The hardest part is the waiting!

[TonksPlum]

Yeah!! I keep shaking the tincture container every day and counting down till its ready lol.

I told John I hope he makes more kits like this because it's so much easier to learn to make these things when an expert put the basics together the first time around. I mean I can do a salve and buy all the materials I need now because I can look back on what he sent me.

[ASV7778M]

I loved this vid. made me remember when I made my herbal salves. Works great! I've since experimented with different oils and herbs, and I could still use the salve formula: 1 cup oil to 1 ounce bees wax.

Loved the song too. :)

[TonksPlum]

lol can't wait till I can look back like that "I remember my first batch of salve, now I have such a variety of types!". :)

I'm happy you liked the vid, its encouraging hearing from other people into herbal medicine!

[Macha0]

Awesome video!

[TonksPlum]

^_^ thanks!

[gonetapott]

Great job on the video. It made me want to make it as well.

[TonksPlum]

Thank you! :D

[thiscitylovesyou]

Well done! Looks fab.

[TonksPlum]

Thank you!! Working on another herbal project now. It's a tincture but takes 6 weeks to brew!!... see you in another 5 weeks! lol

[chunlunner]

where did you order your kit? looks like fun!

[TonksPlum]

I ordered the kit at the "learningherbs" website (add the dot and com at the end).

I got mine at the start of May because when John (the owner of the site) puts them out, they sell really fast. I kept the box in a dry cool area until I was ready to work on it, which was the day this video was filmed :)

[hgnis]

Cheese cloth, mmm yummy.

Good video.

[suchandradasi]

you made it look so fun:D

[TonksPlum]

It was trully loads of fun going through the process :D

Thank you!

[martajornada]

perfecto. Ilike.

[TonksPlum]

I'm happy you like it!! ^_^