Sunday, August 26, 2007

Storing fresh basil

I frequently buy fresh herbs. When I get home from the market I typically store the fresh herbs immediately, wrapped in a damp paper towel in a ziploc bag with all the air pushed out. Without fail the basil goes bad in no time. Frustrated, I finally decided to look up how to make my bunch of basil last longer.

I pulled out my trusty Field Guide to Herbs and Spices book and the book told me to stick the stems of the fresh basil right a glass of water on a windowsill. A couple hints for success include changing the water every couple of days and using just enough water to cover the end of the stems by about a half inch. It works!

That is basil I bought about two weeks ago and it still good. Fresh and green. The stems even grew some sort of root things to allow the plant cuttings to get more water. A few more days and it will have to be dumped, but this is some sort of record. The basil is within my eyesight and not buried in the fridge so I use it frequently and inventively!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I love fresh basil, but I've never seen bunches of it. In the grocery store it comes in an expensive little packet of a few leaves. Where do you purchase it in bunches. When I find a bunch I will certainly use your storing method!