The Easiest Way to Preserve Herbs

It's summer.  That means gardens and CSAs.

And for us, right now, that means lots of fresh herbs.  Basil.  Parsley.  Dill…

Are you wondering what to do with all of it?

Actually, for that reason, I almost never bought fresh herbs, mostly because I didn't know what to do with the leftovers!

Two years ago when we got a whole bunch of parsley and basil, I just dried everything and it worked great.  But this year, I thought that I sure would like to have some fresh-tasting herbs throughout the year, so I got down to figuring out how to preserve them without drying.  And what I found was remarkably easy and worked out great!

First of all, let me say that of course, you can choose to either dehydrate or freeze your leftover herbs (canning doesn't work that well :-)).  Now, I love my dehydrator, and I love dried herbs, but here are some things to think about on both sides of the coin:

Freezing versus Dehydrating Herbs

1.  Freezing will give you more of a fresh flavor to your herbs

2.  Freezing herbs is simpler than drying

3.  Dehydrating doesn't work for all herbs (cilantro does not dry well.  See my post on 6 Super Tips for Cilantro for more info on this great herb!)

4. Of course, dehydrated foods take up less room and you will not take up freezer space with the herbs if your space is limited.

5.  There are cost differences.  See my post on Which Saves Most – Dehydrating, Canning, or Freezing?

Now, there is quite a bit of information out there about freezing herbs, with three main techniques that seem to be the mainstays.

They consisted of:

– freezing in single layers
– freezing chopped herbs in ice cube trays, and
– freezing herbs with oil as a preparation for making pesto.

All of them were too much work for me. I know–it sounds like I am just lazy, but really it's just that I have too much going on and need to cut corners somewhere.

So I ended up trying something easy, doable and workable — and it worked!

‘Cause that's what I need.  Less fuss.  Like my post this past week on The Easiest Way to Peel Garlic.

Get the job done so that I can get onto something else more meaningful.  Like my family, the Word, serving others.

More Food Preservation Posts

• 4 Ways to Freeze Avocados
• How to Freeze Berries
• The Easiest Way to Store Tomatoes
• Homemade Sun-dried Tomatoes
• How to Store Prepared Beans

Do you grow your own herbs?

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