Simmer Pots
Some days on the farm, the best lessons sneak up on us. Our simmer pot class started out as a fun holiday activity, but it didn’t take long for the kids to turn it into an exploration of science, scent, and creativity. They were curious, engaged, and absolutely fascinated by how simple ingredients can transform when we remove moisture, add heat, or mix the right herbs together. If you’ve ever wondered what a hands-on science lesson looks like at K2 Acres — this is it.
The Science Behind Our Simmer Pots
I know, I know — who would’ve guessed how many kiddos are interested in simmer pots? Actually… more than you’d think! They love their houses smelling cozy too, and when they get to be part of the process, the simplest things suddenly turn magical. And as a bonus, simmer pots are an awesome way to teach the concepts of dehydration and preservation — big ideas wrapped in a hands-on, good-smelling project.
Evaporation Everywhere
Today’s big idea was evaporation, and it showed up in almost everything we did — even in a few unexpected ways. Evaporation is simply water turning into vapor and floating away, but once you start paying attention to it, you begin to notice it everywhere. It’s in the steam rising from a warm pot, the way thin slices dry faster than thick ones, the droplets disappearing off a lid, even the way morning dew vanishes as the sun climbs higher.
We actually got a little distracted peeking into our incubator and realizing evaporation was at work there too. As we added warm water to the tray to bring the humidity up, it clicked — the only way that humidity rises is because water is quietly evaporating inside the warm environment. Different project, same science.
It’s one of those quiet processes happening all the time — in our kitchens, in our gardens, in our incubators, and in nature — yet we rarely stop to think about it. Working with simmer pots and dehydrators makes evaporation suddenly visible, giving us a chance to slow down and really see the science unfolding right in front of us.
Why Moisture Has to Go
What happens when you put fresh ingredients into a sealed bag and let them sit? The result…. A slimy, moldy mess. Moisture trapped with sugars creates the perfect playground for bacteria and mold. So the kids learned why we dehydrate each ingredient first: we’re removing the extra water so the food becomes shelf-stable, safe, and perfect for gifting.
No moisture = no slime = no microbes having a party.
👉 Try this:
Make two ingredient bags — one with dehydrated ingredients and one with everything fresh — and check on them over the next few days. Before you start, have the kiddos hypothesize what they think will happen:
Which one will stay the same?
Which one might rot or mold?
Why?
Then watch the results unfold. The dried mix will stay neat and preserved, while the fresh bag will quickly turn into a slimy little science experiment. It’s a simple (and slightly brave!) way to see exactly why we dry our ingredients first.
No Dehydrator? No Problem.
Dehydrators are wonderfully simple tools, and you don’t need anything fancy to get started. They’re often super affordable — you can usually find them used on Marketplace for around $20, and I’ve linked my favorite one on 👉Amazon LINK if you’re curious. But even that isn’t required! You can use your oven on the lowest heat setting to dry ingredients, too. It may take a little longer and you’ll want to crack the door open for airflow, but it works beautifully in a pinch.
Dehydrator Tips
Slice thin!
The thinner the slice, the faster and more evenly it dries. Thick pieces trap moisture and take much longer.Single layer only.
Avoid overlapping. Air needs to reach every surface to pull moisture away.Poke holes in fruits with skins.
Cranberries, grapes, blueberries — anything with a tight skin needs a little “escape route” for moisture.Start with similar ingredients together.
Citrus, apples, herbs, and spices all dry at different speeds. Grouping like-with-like helps everything finish around the same time.Rotate trays if needed.
Some dehydrators heat more at the top or bottom. A quick tray shuffle keeps things even.Don’t rush with high heat.
Low and slow preserves color, shape, and nutrients. Too much heat can cook the fruit instead of drying it.Check for dryness, don’t guess.
Fruit should feel leathery, herbs should crumble, and nothing should feel cool or sticky to the touch.Let everything cool before storing.
Warm pieces create condensation in bags or jars — and condensation leads straight to mold.Store in airtight jars.
A simple mason jar keeps everything crisp, dry, and ready for simmer pots or snacks.Test your batch.
Add one piece to a mason jar and leave it overnight. If you see fog or moisture, it needs more time.
Let the kids cut and prepare as much as possible before everything goes into the dehydrator. The cranberries are especially fun — once they’re washed and ready, let them safely poke each one with a fork. There’s real science behind this step: fruits with tight skins act a lot like a sealed pot lid. The moisture inside wants to escape, but the skin traps it in. When you pierce the skin, you create a little “escape hatch,” just like lifting the lid on a boiling pot so steam can get out.
That tiny hole gives the moisture a pathway to evaporate, helping the fruit dry faster, more evenly, and without turning mushy. And honestly… the kids love it. It’s one of those small jobs that feels both fun and important — because it is!
The Magic (and Science!) of Dehydrators
It’s slow, gentle, and kind of mesmerizing — just like the science happening in our garden when the sun dries dew off the leaves. When we turned the dehydrator on, we let the kids feel the warm air blowing out the side. That little burst of heat and wind is exactly what helps the moisture escape. The gentle warmth encourages the water inside the fruit to move outward, and the steady airflow carries it away. It’s simple technology powered by the same forces at work all around us in nature.
Evaporation pulls water out.
Low heat encourages moisture to move.
Air movement sweeps it away.
Creating Our Simmer Pot Blends
Once everything was ready, the kids built their own simmer pot bags using lemon, orange, sage, rosemary (our little Christmas tree!), cinnamon, cranberries (pretty, not scented), ginger, and apple. These were our ingredients today, but truly, the sky’s the limit. Encourage your kids to smell everything and combine the scents they like best to create a truly personal blend.
Then came my favorite part: the big before and after smell test.
We asked:
Why does the blend smell pretty good before simmering…
…but amazing after?
This opened the door for another science moment: heat releases essential oils. All plants hold tiny drops of natural oil — that’s where the scent lives. When we warm herbs, fruit peels, or spices, those oils loosen, infuse into the water, lift into the steam, and drift through the whole house.
It’s nature’s air freshener, powered by evaporation and a little bit of heat.
👉 Download Your Simmer Pot Recipe
This recipe is also designed to double as a gift tag. Just shrink it down and print multiple per page, and your kiddo has a sweet, handmade tag to tuck in with their simmer pot gift.
Because it’s nice to have a guide occasionally, I made this recipe. But truly… you really can’t go wrong. Here are some other ideas you can mix and match to create your own cozy blend:
🌿 Other Ideas to Add to Your Simmer Pot Mix
If you want to play, here are some lovely things you can toss in. Each one adds a different scent or visual pop:
🍋 Citrus & Fruit
Lemon slices
Lime slices (bright + zesty)
Grapefruit slices (strong citrus scent)
Apple slices (sweet + cozy)
Pear slices (light + fruity)
Freeze-dried strawberries (colorful, gentle scent)
🌿 Herbs
Mint
Thyme
Lavender buds
Bay leaves
Sage
Basil (earthy note!)
🌲 Evergreens
Cedar
Pine
Rosemary (mini “Christmas tree”)
Juniper sprigs (AMAZING scent — but skip the berries)
🍂 Spices
Cinnamon sticks
Cloves
Star anise (smells like holiday magic)
Allspice berries
Cardamom pods
Nutmeg shavings
🌼 Extras for Beauty
Dried cranberries (for color — not scent)
Rose petals
Marigold petals
Orange peel curls
Pine cones (tiny ones!)
🧪 Fun Scent Themes
Let families try combinations like:
Cozy Kitchen
Apple, cinnamon, clove, vanilla bean scrap
Winter Forest
Cedar, bay leaf, rosemary, juniper, clove
Citrus Sunrise
Lemon, orange, mint
Spiced Orchard
Apple, ginger, allspice
Herbal Calm
Lavender, lemon peel, rosemary
🌿 So why make a simmer pot instead of using store-bought room fresheners?
This question made for a great discussion. Many candles, wax melts, and air fresheners on the market contain ingredients that aren’t always so friendly to our bodies. Synthetic fragrances, petroleum-based waxes, and chemical stabilizers can release tiny particles into the air when they’re heated or sprayed. For kids (and grown-ups!) with allergies, asthma, or sensitive noses, those ingredients can sometimes cause headaches, coughing, or irritation.
A simmer pot, on the other hand, uses real plants, real fruit, and real spices — nothing extra, nothing hidden. Just nature doing what nature does. It’s a simple, gentle way to make your home smell cozy without worrying about what’s floating around in the air.
We also talked about safety — because science always comes with responsibility. Water evaporates, and if a simmer pot is left unattended, it can boil dry, scorch the bottom of your pan, or in rare cases even start a fire. The lesson? Lovely smells are wonderful… but we use our senses and our common sense.
I shared how much I love my simple Nesco dehydrator (the turn-dial kind) — it’s on my Amazon link page if you’re curious — but truly, there’s no need to buy anything brand new. All of mine came from Facebook Marketplace for around $20.
And here’s the honest warning I give all parents: once you get a dehydrator, you’ll want to dehydrate everything.
Kids immediately suggested:
“We could make apple chips!”
“Could we dry our herbs from the garden?”
“Can we make our own fruit roll-ups?”
Yes, yes, and yes.
Dehydrators open up a whole world of kitchen science — shrinking, crisping, concentrating, preserving, and transforming food in slow and gentle ways.
And that’s really the heart of today: the kids didn’t just make simmer pots. They practiced knife skills, learned food safety, explored evaporation, watched physical changes, asked questions, made predictions, mixed scents, and created something beautiful to take home.
A simple project… turned into a whole lot of learning.
🌿 Giftable Simmer Pot Tags
My idea when I scheduled this class was to create something these kiddos could give as gifts. Kids love giving little treasures to the people they care about, and a handmade simmer pot mix feels extra thoughtful. If your kiddo would like to gift what they made, here’s the printable gift tag we used in class.
