Refrigerating Herbs:
Storing fresh herbs is easily accomplished. Since most herbs are plants that don’t develop woody, persistent tissue, they can be treated like flowers and their stems can be placed in water. Trim the stems about 1/2 inch, and make sure that no leaves are in the water. Add some plastic wrap loosely around the leaves
leaving the top of the wrap open. Most will keep in the refrigerator for several days this way. The water should be changed daily. Parsley, cilantro, mint and basil are four that seem to thrive in this “bouquet” environment. Others, such as sage, oregano, dill, rosemary, thyme and chives can be rolled in a damp (not wet) paper towel and placed in a plastic bag for several days.
Freezing Herbs:
Freezing fresh herbs is also a good way to preserve them. Fresh Herbs of all types may be chopped finely and mixed with softened butter to form balls about 1 Tablespoon in size, frozen on a cookie sheet, and then placed in plastic bags for use in cooking. Freezing herbs in olive oil is also a good way to preserve them. An old ice cube tray is ideal for this. Simply chop the herbs, add the olive oil and freeze the tray. Once the cubes are formed, empty them into plastic bags. No need to defrost either the ball of herbed butter or cube of herbed olive oil. Just drop them in the stew, casserole or on top of vegetables or meat near the end of the cooking time.
Drying Herbs with Microwave Oven:
If a particular fresh herb is very plentiful, drying it for preservation is easily done in a microwave oven. Place the leaves of the herb on a paper towel on a plate in the microwave. Cook on high for one minute. Stir the leaves, and cook again for one minute. Keep stirring and cooking approximately 30 seconds at a time until the leaves are dry and crumbly. Place the dry herbs in a clean glass jar with a tightly sealed lid. Be sure to mark the type of herb on the jar along with the date of drying. Dried herbs will keep their peak flavor about 6 months to a year.
Drying Herbs with Salt:
Placing fresh herbs in Kosher Salt or Sea Salt is another way to retain their flavor. The leaves should be left on the stems of the herbs when placing them in the salt so that they can easily be removed after a few weeks. Use about 2/3 salt to 1/3 herbs, placing all in a well-sealed plastic bag. The salt will retain the flavor of the herb or herbs when they are removed.
Herbs and Cooking:
Fresh herbs should not be used like dried ones. About 1 Tablespoon of a fresh herb equals 1 teaspoon of a dried herb. Fresh herbs are best when added to food in the final few minutes of cooking. Heat releases the flavors and aromas of fresh herbs, but it does not take too much heat to do that. If your food will be served uncooked, fresh herbs may be added at any time. If using fresh herbs in a marinade, add them at the start with the other ingredients. Making a chiffonade is usually the best way to add large-leaved fresh herbs to food. Do this by stacking the leaves, rolling them and slicing them thinly into strands. For small-leaved herbs such as thyme, simply grasp the stem and pull the leaves off between your fingers. For herbs that have a woody stem such as rosemary, the leaves may be easily trimmed with scissors, and all herbs may be finely chopped with a chef’s knife or by using a pizza wheel. Using a food processor is also a quick way to chop herbs, and grinding them with an old-fashioned mortar and pestle is a wonderful way to release the flavors of basil and other large-leaved herbs. Stems of fresh herbs are usually discarded.
Written By: Margaret Seals, Williamson County Master Gardener Intern
Article Reformated By: Recipe Spy
Source: http://txmg.org/williamson/files/WCMGA_NewsletterOct07.pdfleaving the top of the wrap open. Most will keep in the refrigerator for several days this way. The water should be changed daily. Parsley, cilantro, mint and basil are four that seem to thrive in this “bouquet” environment. Others, such as sage, oregano, dill, rosemary, thyme and chives can be rolled in a damp (not wet) paper towel and placed in a plastic bag for several days.
Freezing Herbs:
Freezing fresh herbs is also a good way to preserve them. Fresh Herbs of all types may be chopped finely and mixed with softened butter to form balls about 1 Tablespoon in size, frozen on a cookie sheet, and then placed in plastic bags for use in cooking. Freezing herbs in olive oil is also a good way to preserve them. An old ice cube tray is ideal for this. Simply chop the herbs, add the olive oil and freeze the tray. Once the cubes are formed, empty them into plastic bags. No need to defrost either the ball of herbed butter or cube of herbed olive oil. Just drop them in the stew, casserole or on top of vegetables or meat near the end of the cooking time.
Drying Herbs with Microwave Oven:
If a particular fresh herb is very plentiful, drying it for preservation is easily done in a microwave oven. Place the leaves of the herb on a paper towel on a plate in the microwave. Cook on high for one minute. Stir the leaves, and cook again for one minute. Keep stirring and cooking approximately 30 seconds at a time until the leaves are dry and crumbly. Place the dry herbs in a clean glass jar with a tightly sealed lid. Be sure to mark the type of herb on the jar along with the date of drying. Dried herbs will keep their peak flavor about 6 months to a year.
Drying Herbs with Salt:
Placing fresh herbs in Kosher Salt or Sea Salt is another way to retain their flavor. The leaves should be left on the stems of the herbs when placing them in the salt so that they can easily be removed after a few weeks. Use about 2/3 salt to 1/3 herbs, placing all in a well-sealed plastic bag. The salt will retain the flavor of the herb or herbs when they are removed.
Herbs and Cooking:
Fresh herbs should not be used like dried ones. About 1 Tablespoon of a fresh herb equals 1 teaspoon of a dried herb. Fresh herbs are best when added to food in the final few minutes of cooking. Heat releases the flavors and aromas of fresh herbs, but it does not take too much heat to do that. If your food will be served uncooked, fresh herbs may be added at any time. If using fresh herbs in a marinade, add them at the start with the other ingredients. Making a chiffonade is usually the best way to add large-leaved fresh herbs to food. Do this by stacking the leaves, rolling them and slicing them thinly into strands. For small-leaved herbs such as thyme, simply grasp the stem and pull the leaves off between your fingers. For herbs that have a woody stem such as rosemary, the leaves may be easily trimmed with scissors, and all herbs may be finely chopped with a chef’s knife or by using a pizza wheel. Using a food processor is also a quick way to chop herbs, and grinding them with an old-fashioned mortar and pestle is a wonderful way to release the flavors of basil and other large-leaved herbs. Stems of fresh herbs are usually discarded.
Written By: Margaret Seals, Williamson County Master Gardener Intern
Article Reformated By: Recipe Spy