Step 1

Place a short length of twine on a work surface. It needs to be long enough to tie around everything.

Step 2

Stack the herbs and bay leaf on top of the twine in a small pile so that stems are parallel to each other.

Step 3

Tie the twine around the herbs to bundle them together. Knot to secure.

Step 4

If using peppercorns, use the cheesecloth. Place herbs, bay leaf, and peppercorns in the center of the square and gather up by the corners, tying with twine to secure.