How To Select, Store, Preserve and Use Fresh Herbs
Small quantities of herbs; fresh or dried, can go a long way in adding full-bodied zest to any dish, be it a sauce, soup, pasta or salad. On a cold, rainy night when there’s not one herb in sight in any store, you’ll be glad you learnt the art of selecting and preserving fresh, flavorful herbs when they were available in abundance.
Selection and Storage of Fresh Herbs
When buying fresh herbs, always select bunches that have fresh, brightly colored, fragrant leaves and firm stems.
To keep herbs fresh for a longer time, wash, put in a re-sealable plastic bags along with a couple of towels and place in the refrigerator. They will stay fresh as ever for at least up to a week.
Alternatively, keep a bouquet of herbs standing in glass of water. Cover loosely with a plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. The herbs will sty fresh for at least a week. The water will need to be changed a couple of time.
Readying Fresh Herbs for Use
Herbs are best washed and blotted dry just before chopping and using.
To remove the leaves from tough rosemary stems, strip off all the leaves with fingertips of one hand while holding the top of the stem with the other hand.
The fastest way to finely chop fresh mint, cilantro or basil is to stack together a bunch of leaves, roll stack lengthwise like a cylinder and cut across the stack to form thin strips.
Fresh herbs preserve their flavor best when sprinkled over the food just before serving or towards the end of the cooking time.
Preserving Fresh Herbs
Herbs can be preserved for the longest time by drying or freezing. No matter which method you use, keep in mind that the more you speed up the drying process, the richer in flavor the resultant dried herb will be.
Microwave Drying – Place herbs on paper towels in the microwave, keep zapping them on high for one minute at a time, rotating and stirring up the herbs in between. Keep doing this till the herbs are dry and crumbly. Remove, crush the brittle leaves with your hands, remove any twiggy stems if present and store the crushed leaves in small herb jars or Ziploc bags.
Conventional Oven – Put washed and dried herb sprigs on a foil-lined baking sheet and place in the oven. Bake at lowest temperature setting till herbs are brittle and dry. This could take up to 10 hours. Remove, crush the brittle leaves with your hands, remove any twiggy stems if present and store the crushed leaves in small herb jars or Ziploc bags.
Freezing - Fresh herbs can also be frozen and enjoyed all year long. Strip leaves from the stems, wash and dry. Half-fill ice cube trays with these leaves and add enough water to cover the leaves and place in the freezer. When completely frozen, pop out the frozen cubes, put them into freezer bags and put them back into the freezer. Remove the herb ice cubes when required and drop into hot cooking liquid or thaw and use for herb vinegars or herb butters. These can be used for up to six months.
Herbs can then be used in any number of meals including cupcakes, this savory cupcake recipe will have everyone asking for seconds.