Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Stevia Dilemma

stevia
My stevia plant is over 4 feet tall right now. I'm at a loss as to what do with the leaves. I thought I'd read that they tend to take on a bitter aftertaste when dried. I wonder if I can steep them in an alcohol of some kind and extract the sweetness that way. Must do some googling.
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12 comments:

  1. UnknownSeptember 22, 2010 at 12:16 AM

    I hope you post about what you come up with... I have the same dilemma.

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  2. Lisa VigerSeptember 22, 2010 at 1:04 AM

    It would probably be easy to make a tincture from the leaves ... just do it like any other tincture ... soak leaves in USP grade grain alcohol. You could probably just freeze the leaves, too.

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  3. KellySeptember 22, 2010 at 8:10 AM

    Good luck with that one, did you google it?

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  4. ThomasSeptember 22, 2010 at 8:10 AM

    Hi Lisa - thanks for the advice! I'll have research more about tinctures.

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  5. ThomasSeptember 22, 2010 at 8:11 AM

    Hey Kel, not yet. I'm hoping to harvest it sometime this weekend. Hopefully I'll have some answers by then.

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  6. kitsapFGSeptember 22, 2010 at 8:59 AM

    No help for you from me as I have never grown stevia or made tinctures. I do hope you blog about what ever you end up doing so we can experiment/learn through your experience!

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  7. OneSeptember 22, 2010 at 9:50 AM

    I have planted stevia but it is too small to be harvested. Tiny snails seem to love it. I understand that some people add stevia into their coffee. Over here we like to drink a herbal drink called 'Luo Han Kuo'. I intend to boil stevia together with this drink.

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  8. Gingerbreadshouse7September 22, 2010 at 12:51 PM

    I have a small big of Stevia and I put some leaves into some Prickly Pear Jelly I was making using less sugar with sure jell...it tasted pretty good, I may not have done it right since it was my own way of doing it..Ginny

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  9. Urban GardenerSeptember 22, 2010 at 2:08 PM

    You can actually steep them in water and make something similar to simple syrup. Then you could make stevia ice cubes and use them as needed. Keep in mind though that a little goes a really long way. When brewing fresh tea I only ever use two or three leaves for a large pitcher. If you haven't already tasted it before, it does have a very herbally taste and is best only used to sweeten tea. Or, just enjoy the plant as it blooms, then cut it back and mulch it over for winter. It will come back bigger and better every year.

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  10. balcony/paradiseSeptember 22, 2010 at 2:32 PM

    I think you could make a tinture with vodka. You got such a big plant, you could try different methods of preserving! Freezing the leaves in icecubes with a little water might work quite well. I hope you'll find out what to do!

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  11. farfly775September 25, 2010 at 10:32 AM

    This is the first year I grew stevia. I dehydrated mine. I use mine in brewed tea also. Usually I crumble the dehydrated leaves in with the tea in the strainer basket while it steeps. Then I add just a little sugar because I like the taste of the sugar. It takes a lot less sugar than without the stevia.

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  12. RickyOctober 15, 2010 at 11:54 PM

    Please help me to find STEVIA, Seeds or Plants.I live in North andover, Ma
    Thanks.
    Ricky

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