Dried Green ShisoDone in a Day, Storage, and Using It on Rice and Rice Balls

Green shiso (ooba) is a Japanese herb in the mint family, with a fresh, slightly minty, slightly citrusy aroma. It’s the leaf often served with sashimi. Outside Japan, look for it at Japanese grocery stores, or grow it; it’s easy to grow from seed.

You may only need one or two leaves, but it’s usually sold in packs of ten, and the leaves wilt and blacken quickly. Dry and crumble the rest, and you can add its aroma in a moment to rice balls, rice seasoning, dressed side dishes and dressings. It’s the dried vegetable that shows up most often in the recipes on this site.

	Drying time	Storage
Dry	1–3 days	6 months at room temperature

Drying times assume drying during the day in sunny weather and bringing them in at night.

How to dry green shiso

1. Wash: Wash the leaves gently, one at a time.
2. Pat dry: Dry them thoroughly between paper towels. Drops of water left on the leaves turn black.
3. Lay out and dry: Lay the whole leaves on a basket without overlapping. To keep the aroma and color, avoid strong direct sun and dry them in a breezy spot in shade or part shade. Bring them in by evening.

Where and when to dry is covered in How to Dry Vegetables, and tools in Tools for Drying Vegetables.

When it’s done

Dry (1–3 days)

It’s done when the leaves have curled and crumble to bits when rubbed between your fingers. We had good weather, and ours were dry in one day.

Day by day

Before drying

Day 1

Storage

• Room temperature: Put completely crisp leaves in a bag or airtight container with a desiccant, and keep somewhere cool and out of direct sun for about 6 months.
• Crumbled in a jar: Crumble by hand and keep in a small jar to sprinkle like a seasoning.

The aroma fades over time, so for the best flavor, use it within 2–3 months. Moisture can lead to mold, so use a dry spoon. More in How to Store Dried Vegetables.

How to use it

• Rice balls and mixed rice: Crumble and mix into rice with salt. Add small dried fish (jako) or sesame if you like.
• To finish mixed rice: Sprinkle over freshly cooked rice for a burst of aroma.
• Dressings and sauces: Mix with ponzu, soy sauce or olive oil for a fresh-tasting sauce.
• Pasta and chilled tofu: A sprinkle to finish. It goes especially well with Japanese-style pasta.

There are recipes using dried green shiso on the dried carrot, dried eggplant, dried zucchini and dried shiitake pages.