This mind-blowing trick for How to Store Herbs will change your life! The herbs will easily last for 2 weeks and often 3 or even 4 weeks in your fridge!
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This is an old post, first published on July 23, 2015, so more than three years ago. I wanted to update it for a while now and opened it fully intending to re-write the whole thing, until I actually read the story.
The story of me “catnapping” a cat.
It brought back memories, and smiles, and a few tears since now, three years later, I do not have any cats anymore and the pain is still raw.
Whenever I find a good blog to follow, I love reading tidbits about the person behind the words. So, I decided to leave the story here for those other people who are as curious as I am.
Life has been hectic. On Monday I had a family birthday dinner, on Tuesday I stole someone’s cat, on Wednesday I had to work late. Wait, what? Stole someone’s cat?
Ok, let me explain. It’s not as sinister as it sounds, I promise.
I volunteer with the Forgotten Ones Cat Rescue non-profit organization and when I say volunteer, I mean I help them with their social media, work on redesigning their website and once a week I go to the adoption centre to clean after the kitties, feed them and play with them. I don’t really rescue cats.
(Note, at this point, in 2018, I don’t volunteer there anymore but hopefully will start again once my daughter gets older.)
My co-worker, who knew about this, called to say that there was a stray/lost cat that has been coming to his backyard for almost a week. It kept meowing and staying there.
Having never rescued a cat before, I sprang into action. I arranged for a veterinary visit. Started the process of finding foster home for the cat. Was prepared to foster it for a few days bringing the total of cats living in my household to three.
Changed our usual routine by going out of the way to work and parking closer to colleague’s house. I got a water bowl, cold water, treats, can of tuna, can opener for the said can, a cage, blankets, pair of shoes to change.
Armed with all that I went to my co-worker’s house at the end of the day, terribly worrying about the cat and it being dehydrated, hurt and scared after the heatwave and the storm that we had over the weekend.
The moment I saw the cat I knew it was a misunderstanding. It was someone’s cat that for some reason decided to hang out in my colleague’s backyard for a week.
The cat looked clean, healthy, well-fed, well-kept and not scared at all. He went right into my arms and I made a decision to still take him to the vet just to make sure.
The clinic confirmed what I suspected – he was healthy and clearly someone’s cat. No signs of malnutrition, dehydration, stress, abuse or anything like that.
It was an emotional experience, with tears and worries and in the end I brought the cat back to where I found him since he obviously had a home near by.
So, that’s the story of me “catnapping” a cat.
Now, with the three-year old story out of the way, let’s get to this mind-blowing trick on How to Store Herbs! It’s absolutely amazing!
I’ve tried different methods for how to store herbs before
- keeping herbs in water on the counter
- washing and drying and keeping in airtight container in the fridge
- not washing them and keeping wrapped in paper towel
Nothing worked. I mean yes, all these are good options if you can finish a bunch of herbs in a week.
However, unless I’m making some kind of pesto, I usually use a couple of sprigs or a few tablespoons of herbs at a time and in a week I still have a lot left.
Then one day, a few years ago I was at my mom’s when she was making a salad and I saw this weirdly shaped bag in her fridge. This is when she told me that someone taught her how to store herbs. And it’s unbelievable!
Herbs now last for at about three weeks in my fridge. Mind you, after two weeks they are not as lively as in the beginning and I wouldn’t use them in fresh garden salads just because of their visual appeal, but they are perfectly fine and tasty to use in soups, pestos or other cooked dishes.
How To Store Herbs
So, this is what you need:
- Herbs (obviously)
- Paper towel
- Plastic bag that your herbs came in
Instructions for how to store herbs:
- First step is optional, but highly recommended. Wash the herbs and dry them thoroughly!
- If the first step is omitted, then just let them dry fully from the moisture that they had at the store.
- Now, get two layers of paper towel and put herbs on it (just like in the picture above).
- And here’s the mind-blowing part. Place the herbs and paper towel into a dry plastic bag, blow into it and tie the bag like a balloon.
The key is to fill the bag with CO2 by exhaling/blowing into it. (You see what I did there? Mind-blowing… blow in the bag… Ok, it’s not that funny… moving on…)
- Keep this “balloon” in the fridge.
- Every 2-3 days, you’ll notice that there’s condensation inside the bag and the paper towel is damp. Place new dry paper towel and turn the bag inside out, so that it’s dry inside. Make the “balloon” and repeat again in a few days.
- This method takes a lot of space in the fridge, but it’s amazing how long I can store the herbs this way. They don’t rot, they don’t go bad, they are still green and flavourful (although limp) in 3 (and sometimes 4) weeks.
Don’t forget to watch the video where I show exactly how to store herbs and then present a bunch that I bought 12 days ago.
Would you like more interesting How-tos and Tips? Check these out!!
What kinds of herbs can you store like this?
- parsley (flat or curly) – if you are diligent in changing the paper towel and turning the bag inside out every 3-4 days, then you can easily store parsley in the “balloon” for about 4 weeks!!!
- cilantro – it will keep for a bit less, most likely no more than 2.5-3 weeks.
- dill – my favourite herb and the one that will keep for the least amount of time but it will still keep for up to 2 weeks if you make sure to change the paper towel and keep the moisture away.
- I have not tried storing other herbs this way but please let me know in the comments if you do!!!
Now that you learned how to store herbs, what can you make with them?
- Dill meatballs
- Chickpea and Eggplant Dip with Dill Pesto
- 15-minute Blue Cheese and Pesto Pasta
- Savoury Herbs and Cheese Muffins
- Instant Pot Fish and Potato Soup
- Beef and Dill Stuffed Crepes
If you love herbs, you must order my new cookbook, The Ultimate One-Pan Oven Cookbook. I use herbs for marinades and sauces in the recipes and they are delicious!!
EXCLUSIVE OFFER: if you pre-order before August 28, you will receive a FREE Ebook with 11 more recipes!! Email julia@imagelicious.com to get your ebook!
How to store herbs
Ingredients
- 1 bunch herbs (parsley, cilantro, dill)
Instructions
- First step is optional, but highly recommended. Wash the herbs and dry them thoroughly!
- If the first step is omitted, then just let them dry fully from the moisture that they had at the store.
- Now, get two layers of paper towel and put herbs on it.
- And here's the mind-blowing part. Place the herbs and paper towel into a dry plastic bag, blow into it and tie the bag like a balloon.
- Keep this "balloon" in the fridge.
- IMPORTANT: Every 2-3 days, you'll notice that there's condensation inside the bag and the paper towel is damp. Place new dry paper towel and turn the bag inside out, so that it's dry inside. Make the "balloon" and repeat again in a few days.
Mel @ The Refreshanista says
thanks for the tips! i always end up with sad-looking herbs within a few hours of buying them at the store. now i can actually go through a whole bundle without throwing any out! yay! also- i love your cat-napping story, so funny! i’m sure the cat loved the extra attention 🙂
Imagelicious says
I hope you try this tip and it works for you. I’ve been storing herbs this way for a few years now and I love that I don’t waste them anymore. And yes, that was a pretty funny (although emotional) cat-napping story!
La Cuisine d'Helene says
I don’t usually blow in the bag, I learned something new today. Thanks for sharing.
Imagelicious says
Blowing in the bag is apparently the key. According to the person who taught this trick to my mom, this is how they store herbs/produce in stores. CO2 helps with preservation (apparently)
Homemade & Yummy says
I love learning new things….thanks for sharing this great tip!!
Imagelicious says
You are welcome. I hope you try this tip!
Olivia B says
Great tip! I have such trouble keeping herbs, so I rarely ever buy them. Going to try this!
Imagelicious says
I hope you try it and it works for you! The trick is to remember to switch paper tower, turn the bag inside out and make the "balloon" every few days.