Great Uses for Garden Mint (Everything From Tea to Window Cleaner!)

Humans have been enjoying the flavor and aroma of mint for thousands of years, so it’s no surprise that we have found endless ways to use these talented plants. It helps that mints are resilient and easy to grow, with mature stands producing huge crops of fragrant leaves.

What to do with a bounty of mint? As a gardener, you can start by keeping a few stems in a jar of water where you can admire them up close and have usable leaves within easy reach. Should some of the stems strike roots, pot them up and give them to a friend.   

It’s also a good idea to find a wide-mouthed jar for making overnight infused water, which requires no heating. Crush two handfuls of well-washed leaves in the bottom of the jar, fill with warm water, and let sit overnight. Strain, chill and enjoy.

Easy Mint Recipe Ideas

As time permits, make mint-based meadow tea. Only three generations ago, it was common to make big pots of the stuff, often using super-vigorous apple mint. The mint was boiled and strained, sweetened with sugar, and might include a slice of rhubarb to lend a lemony edge. It’s still a crowd pleaser.

Several famous cocktails use mint, including ice-cold Cuban mojitos. A mojito combines crushed mint leaves with simple syrup, lime juice, bitters and rum, with enough club soda to make it fizz. It’s a perfect drink for summer sipping, even without the rum.

You will find hundreds of Middle Eastern recipes using mint, including the chopped salad called tabbouleh. Tabbouleh combines bulgur wheat with tomatoes, onion, and lots of finely chopped parsley and mint, a celebration of the summer garden. At my house we also make many batches of tzatziki, a goes-with-everything yogurt sauce laced with lemon juice, cucumbers and mint, often with dill as part of the mix.

Sometimes simple is best, as is the case when you sprinkle chopped peppermint over any type of chilled melon. Mint will also give a bowl of berries a special zing, and it partners well with pineapple, mango and other tropical fruits. A few leaves added to a banana smoothie bring delightful flavor and color.

Best Ways to Preserve Mint

Mint is easy to dry, and the dried leaves will keep for a couple of years in a cool, dark place. Strains with small, flat leaves (like many peppermints) can be hung to dry in small bunches in a place with low humidity and good ventilation. Furry apple mint and thick-leafed spearmint take longer to dry, so they do better in a dehydrator set at its lowest heat, or no heat at all. I like to dry whole stems until they wilt, and then clip off the leaves for the second phase of drying. Keep leaves whole as best you can, because whole dried leaves retain their volatile compounds better than crushed ones.

Once your dried mint needs are met, you might freeze puddles of mint pesto to use in winter to make zippy chimichurri sauces or to combine with pasta, peas or grilled pineapple. Then make a mint decoction to use in cooking, cleaning, or for deterring pests.

Make A Mint Decoction

In herbal lingo, a decoction is a very strong tea that is cooked and allowed to steep overnight. To make a mint decoction, place 4 cups of water in heavy saucepan and add several handfuls of mint leaves, at least a pint firmly packed. Use your hand to crush the leaves in the water for about thirty squeezes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 10 minutes, mashing often with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, cover, and allow to sit overnight. Strain out the herbs and store in a clean glass jar in the refrigerator. Use the mint decoction as needed for these and other diverse projects.

Make a mint syrup to flavor water, pour over ice cream, or you can use it in tea, coffee or cocktails. Bring equal parts mint decoction and sugar to a slow simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring often. Cool and store in glass containers in the refrigerator.

Make a cooling facial spray for hot days in the shade by mixing a tablespoon of witch hazel into a cup of mint decoction.

Make a minty window cleaner by adding a tablespoon of vinegar to a cup of mint decoction in a pump spray bottle. It leaves behind a fresh scent and very few streaks. The volatile compounds in mint repel some insects, so this mixture also might be helpful to shoo away gnats and mosquitoes from a backyard picnic, or to deter ants intent on invading your kitchen. You don’t need a special preparation to discourage biting bugs outdoors. Simply stuff your pockets with sprigs of mint, and rub the leaves on your skin to make it harder for insects to smell you out.

A stand of mint also has entertainment value. In late summer when unharvested stems burst into bloom, expect to see a robust pollinator party as a long list of beautiful buzzers visit the flowers. Pull up a chair and settle in to watch an endless procession of bees, wasps, flies, moths, and butterflies making the most of your garden mint.

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