Stove Top Potpourri Recipes That Will Impress All Your Guests (2024)

FAQs

How to make your house smell good with a stove simmer? ›

Try cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, bay leaves or even whole peppercorns. Star anise are a beautiful, fun addition with their star shaped pods. I've also been known to toss in a chunk of ginger root. (You can substitute ground spices – they'll still work but your simmer pot won't be as pretty.)

Dried potpourri will last 10 to 14 days in an airtight jar. Once you begin simmering your potpourri, the mixture will remain fresh and fragrant for several day.

In addition to filling any space with a warm and inviting aroma, simmering potpourri on the stove can also help to humidify the dry winter air. Plus, it's just a fun thing to do when you're stuck inside — before you know it you'll be curled up by the fire with a good book and a cup of tea.

To a pot of water, add a bit of molasses (no need to add a lot, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup depending on how much water you use), sliced fresh ginger, a whole nutmeg that's been grated a bit, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and whole allspice. This smells exactly like my favorite gingerbread cookie recipe.

Two trusty ways to make your potpourri smell stronger are to add more essential oil to the mixture every so often or to agitate it. Shake the container or stir the potpourri to release more scent.

Frequently Asked Questions about Simmer Pot Potpourri

You can pack your potpourri bags a few days in advance and keep them in the fridge until gifting. Encourage the recipient to do the same if they are not using it within the next 48 hours.

Use a pot or crockware that you will not want to cook food in. Add 3 tablespoons of any of our potpourris to 1 cup of boiling water. Simmer on the stove or in a simmering pot. The scent will last for hours.

That trick was making what I now know is called a simmer pot, or stovetop potpourri. A simmer pot is when you boil herbs, fruit, or spices on your stovetop (or crockpot) and the smell takes over your home in the best possible way. I swear, simmer pots are the BEST air freshener.

Absolutely! You can use dried fruit or herbs in stovetop potpourri for just as wonderful of a smell! In fact, you can even dry your own fruit and give stovetop potpourri as a gift to neighbors and friends!

Are simmer pots healthier than candles? ›

The great thing about a simmer pot is that it is an easy DIY air freshener and you can choose ingredients that fit the atmosphere you wish to create. In addition, there's no need to worry about open flames as you would get with candles, and there is no risk of toxic chemicals.

Bring a saucepan of water to a boil, then add ingredients like apples, oranges, cinnamon sticks, cloves, ginger, cranberries, nutmeg, vanilla, and more, and keep the water at a simmer to fill your home with a beautiful autumnal aroma.

Orange peels make a home smell cozy and clean. You can boil orange peels with mulling spices like cinnamon and cloves to send a fresh autumnal aroma through the air. Boiling orange peels with lemon and grapefruit peels create a fresh, vibrant, and energizing aroma that makes your house smell clean and pristine.

In a bowl, combine 1 cup of dried rose petals with 1/4 cup of dried rosemary and 1/2 cup of dried lavender. Toss in 1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves, cinnamon, dried rosebuds, and orange peels. Add a few drops of rose or lavender oil. Then, add 1/4 teaspoon of a fixative such as crushed orris root.

Simmer pots are an easy and natural way to make your house smell amazing with the cozy scents of baking, and humidify dry air in your home. Think of it as a liquid potpourri pot, bubbling away on your stove all day.

Try a Fall Boil

“Combine two cups of water, a few slices of fresh oranges, two sprigs of rosemary, two cinnamon sticks, two whole cloves, and one teaspoon of vanilla.” Simply combine everything in a crock and set to low heat. To keep the aroma going, add more water every couple hours.

Make a lemon steam to neutralize pungent odors. Simply cut a lemon in half, add it to a pot of boiling water, and let it simmer for ten minutes. Or if you have leftover lemon peels or bits from your cooking, you can boil those too! For even more odor elimination, sprinkle a tablespoon or so of baking soda in the water.

When a recipe asks you to “simmer a pot of water” or “leave it at a simmer,” that means you're heating that liquid until it reaches a temperature between 180–200°F (82–93°C). Depending on your stove, you'll want to set your burner between low to medium-low heat.