It’s summertime and our herb gardens are thriving. You probably know that frequent harvesting keeps your herbs producing flavorful new foliage and prevents them from flowering. But during the growing season, you may end up needing to pick more fresh herbs than you can use right away.
Preserving herbs for long-term storage not only keeps an abundant harvest from going to waste, it also allows you to enjoy the flavor and aroma of garden herbs in your recipes all year long. Here we share a few easy ways to take advantage of a bounty of fresh herbs by preserving them for later.
Dry Them Out
Probably the easiest and most familiar way to preserve herbs is to dry them. This method works best for tougher, woodier herbs with a relatively low moisture content – like rosemary, oregano, and thyme. Simply snip long stems and collect them into a loose bundle secured at the end with thread or twine. Hang the bundle upside down until it’s completely dry, then remove the stems and store the dried foliage in an air-tight container.
Freeze in Water
Fresh herbs can be frozen too. In fact, freezing preserves more of the flavor and aroma of fresh herbs than drying does – especially for tender herbs with a higher moisture content like basil, parsley, mint, and chives. Just grab an ice cube tray and fill each compartment with your favorite chopped fresh herbs or even whole leaves. Top the herbs with water and freeze, then store the cubes in zip-closure storage bags until needed. Pop a cube into your favorite soup or sauce this winter, and it’ll be like summer never ended in your kitchen.
Freeze in Oil
If you have a recipe that welcomes the flavor and richness of olive oil, then freezing herbs in oil might be an even better option. A favorite application of this method is to make a batch of your favorite basil pesto recipe – minus the cheese – then freeze the pesto in a jar or in an ice cube tray. Before freezing, top the cubes or jar with a little extra oil and when the craving hits you some time in February, just thaw and enjoy. Other herbs can be frozen in oil too. Just be sure to remove the foliage from the stems, blend in about a 4:1 ratio of herbs to oil in your food processor and freeze as you would if you were using water.
Freeze on the Stem
You can freeze fresh herbs whole on the stem too. This method works better for hardier herbs like rosemary and bay, though. Spread the clipped stems out in a single layer on a sheet pan and freeze, then store in an air-tight bag or container for later use.
Make an Infusion
Another great way to preserve the flavor of your favorite herbs – but not necessarily the herbs themselves – is to create an infusion. An infusion pulls the flavor and aroma from the herb into a liquid such as vinegar which you then use in your recipes. To create a vinegar herb infusion, loosely fill a jar with your favorite herb then cover the herb with room temperature white or apple cider vinegar. Cover tightly and leave in a dark place for a couple weeks. Then, strain out the spent herbs and store the now flavored vinegar in a new jar for use in any recipe that calls for it – like salad dressing, cucumber salad, or bread dip.
Keep that Herbal Goodness Coming
Save the growing season’s delicious abundance for later by preserving some of your fresh herbs now. And if you have any questions about growing or preserving your herbs, our team in the Greenhouse is happy to help any time.
