Gifts From The Kitchen Gods: Frozen Chopped Herbs

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

I often find myself wishing that I had a little fresh basil, cilantro, thyme or dill on hand. Not a whole bunch, just a pinch to brighten up some salad dressing, add a little flavor to a dish, or to make a garnish with.

Unless you happen to a) have a big herb garden, and b) live in an area of the country with a year-round growing season, the chances are that you, too, have been caught herb-less from time to time.

But there is a solution -- frozen chopped herbs! These are just as handy as frozen stock cubes and pretty easy to make (and even easier to buy.)

Frozen, chopped oregano

You can do this during harvest time if you have your own garden or just make smaller batches any time you have too large a bunch of herbs to use up before they'll go bad. You can either freeze each herb singly or make a frozen herb mix if you routinely use two or more herbs together in your cooking.

Freeze Your Own Herbs

1. Buy or pick some fresh herbs (parsley, cilantro, dill, thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, basil, marjoram, parsley, mint, etc.)

2. Wash and dry the herbs, removing the stems and discarding any yellowed or bruised leaves.

3. Chop the herbs to the size desired.

4. Lay the chopped herbs out in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze for 15-20 minutes.

5. Store the frozen chopped herbs in freezer baggies or any other freezer-proof container you'd like to use.

6. When the time comes to use the herbs there is no need to defrost them before adding them to whatever you're making -- they're so small and thin that they'll thaw very quickly.

Or if you would rather take the easy route (there is no shame...) you can also buy frozen chopped fresh herbs. I've tried a bunch of the ones made by Daregal Gourmet and have found them to be tasty and convenient.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Done it and some herbs like basil, dill, cilantro, chives lose some of their taste after freezing

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Gifts From The Kitchen Gods: Frozen Chopped Herbs

I often find myself wishing that I had a little fresh basil, cilantro, thyme or dill on hand. Not a whole bunch, just a pinch to brighten up some salad dressing, add a little flavor to a dish, or to make a garnish with.

Unless you happen to a) have a big herb garden, and b) live in an area of the country with a year-round growing season, the chances are that you, too, have been caught herb-less from time to time.

But there is a solution -- frozen chopped herbs! These are just as handy as frozen stock cubes and pretty easy to make (and even easier to buy.)

Frozen, chopped oregano

You can do this during harvest time if you have your own garden or just make smaller batches any time you have too large a bunch of herbs to use up before they'll go bad. You can either freeze each herb singly or make a frozen herb mix if you routinely use two or more herbs together in your cooking.

Freeze Your Own Herbs

1. Buy or pick some fresh herbs (parsley, cilantro, dill, thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, basil, marjoram, parsley, mint, etc.)

2. Wash and dry the herbs, removing the stems and discarding any yellowed or bruised leaves.

3. Chop the herbs to the size desired.

4. Lay the chopped herbs out in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze for 15-20 minutes.

5. Store the frozen chopped herbs in freezer baggies or any other freezer-proof container you'd like to use.

6. When the time comes to use the herbs there is no need to defrost them before adding them to whatever you're making -- they're so small and thin that they'll thaw very quickly.

Or if you would rather take the easy route (there is no shame...) you can also buy frozen chopped fresh herbs. I've tried a bunch of the ones made by Daregal Gourmet and have found them to be tasty and convenient.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Done it and some herbs like basil, dill, cilantro, chives lose some of their taste after freezing