Plantain Salve
A soothing plantain salve for bug bites, stings, and minor scrapes, made with olive oil infused with fresh plantain leaves and thickened with beeswax. Yields about 8 oz of finished salve, enough to fill four 2-oz tins. Keeps for about a year.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups fresh plantain herb chopped, firmly packed. Broadleaf or narrowleaf
- 1 1/4 cups Olive oil enough to cover the leaves. Or coconut, sweet almond, jojoba, or grapeseed. Some will be lost to straining, see notes.
- 1 ounce Bees Wax pellets or grated from a block. Per cup of strained oil
Instructions
- Harvest fresh plantain from clean ground that hasn't been sprayed and isn't along a roadside or dog-walking path. Be certain of your identification before harvesting any wild plant.
- Chop the leaves into small pieces and pack them into a pint mason jar.
- Pour olive oil over the chopped leaves until they're fully covered, leaving the jar uncapped.
- Set the jar on a spacer inside a pot or slow cooker so the glass doesn't touch direct heat, then add water around it.
- Keep the water at 110 to 120°F for 24 to 48 hours. A dehydrator set to 115°F or a multicooker on yogurt mode is the most hands-off. A warm water bath works if you refresh it every few hours. Never use a slow cooker as direct heat, since even "keep warm" runs around 170°F and will cook the leaves.
- Strain the warm oil through a cheesecloth-lined fine mesh strainer. Squeeze the cheesecloth to release the last of the oil, then compost the spent leaves.
- Measure the strained oil. Return it to a small saucepan or the top of a double boiler and add beeswax at 1 oz per cup of oil. When starting with 1 1/4 cup oil, you'll end up with about 1 cup strained (as some is always absorbed by the herb and on your tools/cheesecloth in the process).
- Warm gently over low heat, stirring constantly, until the beeswax has melted completely and the mixture looks smooth.
- Pour the finished salve into 2 oz tins or small glass jars.
- Let the salve cool undisturbed for at least 30 minutes before putting lids on or using.
Notes
Yield ~ This recipe makes about 8 oz of finished salve, enough to fill four 2-oz tins.
Beeswax ratio ~ 1 oz beeswax per cup of strained infused oil produces a medium-firm salve that softens on contact with skin. Measure the oil after straining, not before, since the leaves and cheesecloth absorb some of what you started with. Use about 3/4 oz per cup for a softer balm, or 1 1/4 oz per cup for a harder, stick-style salve. If the consistency comes out wrong, gently rewarm the salve and adjust before it sets.
Substituting oils ~ Olive oil is what I use most often. Coconut, sweet almond, jojoba, and grapeseed all work. Coconut produces a slightly firmer salve at room temperature; jojoba absorbs the fastest into skin. Avoid oils with strong scents that compete with the plantain.
Infusion methods ~ Keep the jar at 110 to 120°F for 24 to 48 hours. That's Fahrenheit, not Celsius. The easiest hands-off options are a dehydrator set to 115°F or a multicooker on yogurt mode. A warm water bath in a bowl works if you refresh the water every few hours. A slow cooker can be used as an insulator with warm water around the jar, but never as a direct heat source, since even its "keep warm" setting runs around 170°F and will cook the leaves.
Using dried plantain ~ Dried leaf can go through this same warm infusion, or you can use a traditional cold infusion instead: cover the dried leaf with oil, cap the jar, and let it sit out of direct sunlight for four to six weeks before straining. The amounts stay the same either way. Fresh leaves must use the warm method, since the water in fresh plant material will spoil a long slow infusion.
Shelf life ~ Stored in a cool, dark, dry place, this salve keeps its potency for about a year. Freezing extends it further, and a few drops of vitamin E oil stirred in with the beeswax works as a natural antioxidant. Discard any salve that smells rancid or shows mold.
For sensitive skin ~ Always patch test on a small area first, since allergic reactions to any new herbal preparation are possible.
Vegan version ~ Substitute candelilla wax for beeswax at roughly the same ratio. See the vegan herbal salve recipe for details. Cocoa butter also works, though you'll need slightly more of it.
What this salve isn't for ~ Skip it on deep cuts, punctures, serious burns, or infected skin. It's meant for minor, superficial bites, scrapes, and irritation.
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