I first had to learn how to freeze parsley when my big herb-garden winner was a hearty Italian parsley plant. Which was excellent because I love parsley, bit bad because the cilantro on its left and the dill on its right didn’t fare so well because of it. A battle of the herbs.
I love parsley. I already mentioned that, but it bears mentioning again. I love parsley so much that even as a little kid dining out with my family, I’d end up with a huge pile of green on my plate. It was the first thing everyone did: Once your plate is set in front of you, pass your parsley sprig to Kare. (Note: A very important lesson I learned quickly was that curly raw kale garnishes did NOT taste like parsley).
Here’s what I do to preserve parsley so I can enjoy the taste of fresh parsley all winter – without having to pick up a bundle for a buck or two from the grocery store, wash, snip, clip, and chop.
Cute little frozen parsley flowers! I’ll plop these in with homemade pasta sauces all winter. (You can use plain old rectangle ice cube trays, too. I won’t judge!)
Wait – Can You Freeze Parsley?!
Yes, you can! Frozen chopped parsley still tastes great in all your recipes, but it won’t look great as a garnish (sorry).
How to Freeze Parsley
- First, snip about 8 cups worth of parsley leaves
- Wash, drain, and throw the parsley on some paper towels. Pat dry.
- Throw it in your food processer, handy chopper, or, if you’re me, your blender because you still don’t have that Cuisinart food processer you’ve been coveting
- Use your machine of choice to chop up your parsley (or chop the old fashioned way with a knife – it takes more time, but you’ll end up with a slightly nicer, more consistent end product), drizzling about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in as you go (this helps bind the parsley together for pressing into the ice cube tray).
- Measure a tablespoon (or preferred measurement) of the chopped parsley and place it into one of the ice cube tray compartments to use as a guide for filling the rest of them with approximately the same amount (I used the pink flower-shaped ice cube tray from Ikea – only $1.99 and cute as heck!)
- Press the remaining parsley into the remaining ice cube tray compartments.
- Freeze overnight.
- Pull out the tray and pop your little parsley shapes out! Aren’t they cute? Now just put ’em in a Ziploc bag and store them in the freezer until you need them.
Easy chopped parsley to enjoy all winter!
How to Freeze Parsley
Ingredients
- Fresh parsley
Instructions
- Wash, drain, and throw the parsley on some paper towels. Pat dry.
- Throw it in your food processer, handy chopper, or, if you’re me, your blender because you still don’t have that Cuisinart food processer you’ve been coveting
- Use your machine of choice to chop up your parsley (or chop the old fashioned way with a knife – it takes more time, but you’ll end up with a slightly nicer, more consistent end product), drizzling about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in as you go (this helps bind the parsley together for pressing into the ice cube tray).
- Measure a tablespoon (or preferred measurement) of the chopped parsley and place it into one of the ice cube tray compartments to use as a guide for filling the rest of them with approximately the same amount (I used the pink flower-shaped ice cube tray from Ikea – only $1.99 and cute as heck!)
- Press the remaining parsley into the remaining ice cube tray compartments.
- Freeze overnight.
- Pull out the tray and pop your little parsley shapes out! Aren’t they cute? Now just put ’em in a Ziploc bag and store them in the freezer until you need them.
I’m so glad you’re here! I’m a vegetarian home cook, certified plant-based pro, and mom. I’m married to an enthusiastic carnivore, and my mission is to achieve peace in the kitchen – one tasty recipe at a time. These days, I also try not to ask to speak to the manager.
Worthy tips👍
You wondered what to do weed with fennel. Fennel makes a good substitute for anise in homemade chai. 1 tbsp crushed fennel or anise (use a mortar and pestle), 1 bay leaf, 20 green cardamon pods, crushed with the m&p, 1 stick of cinnamon, 12 cloves and 1/4 tsp black peppercorns, crushed with m&p, and 1 in chunk piece of ginger in 7 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add 2 tbsp Darjeeling or Assam tea leaves and simmer for another 10 minutes. Strain and remove leaves, etc. Place back on stove and bring to simmer. Add 9 tbsp brown sugar, or or other sweetener to taste). Warm up 1 cup whole milk and add. Then enjoy.
You should list olive oil in your ingredient list.