The best time to freeze parsley is in late August, especially if you grow your own parsley. If you grow it yourself or buy it from the farmer or the store, it is best to freeze parsley fresh. Parsley is the freshest right after it has been harvested.
Almost every year, our family grows a lot of parsley, and once it’s time to harvest, a tone of parsley needs to be stored for cold winter days. I tried several ways to freeze it throughout the years, but trial and error led me to discover the best way to freeze parsley.
If you want to put fresh parsley in your winter crock-pot casserole or a comfort winter dish, like beef stew or pasta sauce, then the best ways to freeze parsley in ice cube trays are to:
#1 Freeze parsley in ice cube tray finely chopped without any liquid
#2 Freeze parsley in ice cube tray finely chopped with water
#3 Freeze parsley in ice cube tray in olive oil
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What is the best way to freeze parsley in ice cube trays and mold
Parsley is a healthy leafy vegetable full of nutrients, vitamins A and C, and full of flavor, that lifts your dish. It is almost an essential ingredient in Middle Eastern cuisine, French and Mediterranean cuisine.
Parsley is full of flavor when it is harvested, but if you don’t store it the right way, it quickly becomes wilted and losses quality. That is why freezing parsley is the best way to preserve quality and freshness for times when it is most needed in your kitchen.
Our family loves parsley. That is why we learned to freeze it so we can enjoy its flavor from early winter all the way to spring.
The best way to freeze parsley depends on the types of dishes you are making with parsley. Parsley compliments many recipes; that is why you freeze it depending on what food you prepare the most in your kitchen.
#1 Best method for freezing parsley in ice cube tray – finely chopped without any liquids
To make frozen parsley in ice cube tray with this method, you first need to clean the parsley, wash it in cold water and then completely dry it. Parsley is then finely chopped and put directly in the ice cube trays. The last thing is to put the fully packed ice cube trays in the freezer.
There is quite a lot of frozen parsley in one fully packed frozen parsley cube. It depends on ice cube tray capacity, but one ice cube usually serves as 2 large tablespoons of fresh finely chopped parsley.
Freezing food is a perfect way to keep it fresh. Check out also how to freeze sardines, yellow wax beans, or ginger garlic paste.
Freezing parsley without any liquids is the best and most useful way to do it. This method is best because you can use it in any kind of dish you are making. If you want to use it in a sauce, just take one cube out of the freezer and add it to the sauce. If you’re going to saute parsley in some oil, just put a cube in warm oil and saute it. The same goes for spreads and dips, where defrosting before usage is necessary.
PROS and CONS of this method
The best part of this method is that you can use frozen parsley cubes in any dish.
The downside of this method is that there is a lot of parsley in one cube, which means you can only use it for recipes with more servings. Since we are a family of five, one frozen cube of parsley is perfect for the quantities of food we make.
#2 Best method for freezing parsley in ice cube tray – finely chopped with water
To make frozen parsley in ice cube tray with this method, you first need to clean the parsley, wash it in cold water and then completely dry it. Parsley is then finely chopped, preferably with a food processor. In the process of mixing, add some water to mixed parsley. When done, take a spoon and fill ice cube trays with the mixture and freeze it.
This method is also excellent. You can use the end product in various dishes, but you need to add more than one cube of frozen parsley per dish if you make larger quantities.
The only downside is that you can’t use these cube in hot oil. If you put an ice cube of frozen parsley, which is made with this method into oil and saute the parsley, the oil will start to splatter all over because hot oil and water don’t go well together.
To avoid oil splatters, simply freeze parsley cubes made with water in a separate ice cube tray and later put them in a separate bag, if you are making method #1 and method #2 at the same time.
You might ask yourself, why would you even make this method with water if you can make frozen parsley without water. The fact is that frozen parsley in cubes made without water is very well packed together. This means that if you take a whole frozen cube of parsley and put it into a dish that doesn’t require a lot of parsley, you will end up with a lousy meal.
PROS and CONS of this method
The best part of this method is to use frozen parsley cubes in any dish for large and small food quantities.
The downside of this method is that you can’t saute cubes in oil.
#3 Best method for freezing parsley in ice cube tray – finely chopped with oil
To make frozen parsley in ice cube tray with this method, you first need to clean the parsley, wash it in cold water and then completely dry it. Parsley is then coarsely chopped with a chopping knife or with a food processor.
The first way to make these cubes is to add oil directly into the parsley mix. When done, fill the ice cube trays with a spoon and freeze.
The second way is to thoroughly mix the parsley, fill the ice cube trays halfway with it, pour oil over each ice cube, and freeze.
This method is excellent if you are making dishes that require sauteing herbs and parsley in oil.
PROS and CONS of this method
The best part of this method is to saute frozen parsley cubes directly in the pan without defrosting them.
The downside of this method is that there aren’t many dishes that compliment frozen parsley and oil together.
How to prepare parsley for freezing in ice cube tray and mold
If you make all three frozen parsley methods in ice cube trays or molds, you will need to make each batch separately and put each batch into separate ice cube mold. This way, you can avoid the unnecessary troubles within the cooking process, described in each method.
Preparing parsley is the same for each method. First, you need to clean the parsley of all weeds and dirt. Wash it thoroughly in cold water. When washed, put it on a kitchen cloth, so the excess water is better absorbed. Before you start with the chopping and mixing process, parsley needs to be fully dry.
The next step is to cut off the stems of the parsley. You can eat them, as they are very flavorful, but mixed parsley’s consistency won’t be the same if you include stems. Also, stems are much more challenging to chop or mix in the food processor. If you don’t know what to do with parsley stems, use them in beef broth, soups, and stews.
When you are only left with the upper part of parsley, which are leaves attached to a skinny stem, start to chop it or put it in the food processor. Suppose you have a lot of parsley the best way to cut it si with the food processor.
If you are making method #2 or #3, its time to add water or oil when parsley is finely mixed. You can also add oil later directly to the ice cube tray if you are making method #3.
When ice cube trays or molds are full, put them in the freezer and freeze for at least 24 hours. After they are frozen, put them out of the ice cube trays and store the cubes in separate bags, depending on what kind of parsley cubes you made.
Should I wash parsley before freezing?
Whether you buy parsley in a store or harvest the parsley in your garden, it is essential to wash it thoroughly.
Store-bought parsley has gone through many warehouses and hands to come to your kitchen. Washing it in lots of cold tap water is a must.
Even if you harvest parsley yourself in your garden, washing it is necessary. There are plenty of beautiful little creatures crawling around the garden that make the parsley dirty. Wash it thoroughly under cold tap water.
What is the best alternative way to freeze parsley besides in ice cube trays or molds
The best alternative method to freeze parsley is to pack mixed parsley into a ziplock bag or plain plastic bag.
Fill the bag with parsley and flatten it. Put the bag of parsley in the freezer and freeze it flat. Don’t fold it or pack it together. If you don’t flatten the parsley in the bag, you will be left with a large frozen parsley ball. Using it is very difficult as it will be tough to cut off a small chunk of off a frozen parsley ball to put in your dish.
How long can you freeze fresh parsley
Frozen parsley in ice cube tray stays fresh for a long time. You can use it for 4 months. It will start to change color after a longer period, and the taste won’t be as intense as with fresh frozen parsley.
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Sources:
Parsley benefits https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/parsley-benefits
