It's important to use high quality olive oil: first cold pressed and organic.
Because of the risk of fermentation, olive oil macerations are generally obtained from dried plants. It is therefore essential to dry the plants thoroughly after harvesting, to ensure that no trace of moisture remains and that there are no small insects. Otherwise, fermentation may occur and the macerate may become rancid.
There is no fixed ratio for making oily macerates. The most important thing is to cover the plants well with vegetable oil.
Storage: 2 to 3 years, protected from heat and light.
Cold maceration
- Fill the jar with the dried plants to be macerated.
- Cover all the plants with oil.
- Do not close the jar: place a piece of muslin on top, tied with a rubber band.
- Leave for 24 hours.
- The next day, add more oil if necessary. The amount will depend on the absorption capacity of the plants used.
- Place the bottle in a relatively thick brown paper bag to keep out the light.
- Place the jar in the sun.
- Stir regularly for 4 to 6 weeks.
- Then place a piece of muslin in a glass funnel. Place the funnel over a new amber bottle, filter and squeeze the muslin well by twisting.
- Leave to stand for a few hours to check that there is no water in the mixture. If there is, filter a second time into another container.
Hot maceration
- The principle is to heat macerate for 7 to 15 days in a pressure cooker, yoghurt maker or slow cooker. This process is best for fresh plants as the heat allows the water to evaporate during the process.
- Fill the slow cooker with the plants (fresh or dried).
- Cover with oil.
- Leave the pot open.
- Heat to 40ºC.
- The next day, add more oil if necessary. This will depend on the absorption capacity of the plants used.
- Leave to macerate for 7 to 15 days.
- Filter and bottle as for cold maceration.
To preserve your oils, you can add:
- 10 drops of natural vitamin E per 100 ml of vegetable oil
- 6 drops of Lavandula angustifolia essential oil per 100 ml of vegetable oil.