How to Store Fresh Herbs: Cilantro, Basil, Parsley, and More

Take off the rubber band or twist tie as soon as you get home. A tight band crushes the stems and traps moisture, which is where rot starts. Pick out any yellow, black, or slimy leaves now, because one bad sprig spreads to the rest.

If the bunch is gritty, rinse it in a bowl of cold water and then dry it completely. Leftover water on the leaves is the main reason herbs go slimy in the fridge. If the herbs look clean, skip the rinse and wash them just before you cook.

Parsley, cilantro, mint, dill, and tarragon last longest when you treat them like a bouquet. Trim the bottom of the stems, stand them in a jar with an inch or two of water, and loosely cover the leaves with a plastic bag or a produce bag. Keep the jar in the fridge and change the water every two or three days, or whenever it looks cloudy.

If you don’t have room for a jar, wrap the bunch in a dry paper towel and put it in a container or a loosely closed bag. The towel soaks up excess moisture while the container keeps the leaves from drying out.

Cilantro is the most fragile of the common herbs and the most worth storing carefully. Use the jar method in the fridge with a bag loosely over the top. Stored this way, cilantro often stays fresh for one to two weeks. Leaving it in the bag it came in usually gives you three or four days.

Leave the roots on if your bunch has them. Market cilantro often does, and the roots help the stems keep drawing water.

Basil is the exception to the fridge rule. Below about 50°F, basil leaves bruise and turn black, so a cold fridge ruins it within a day or two. Keep basil on the counter in a jar of water, out of direct sun, like a bunch of flowers. Change the water every couple of days and pinch off leaves as you need them.

Stored this way, basil keeps for several days to a week. If you bought more than you can use, turn it into pesto or freeze it (see below) rather than letting it wilt.

Flat-leaf and curly parsley are the sturdiest soft herbs. In a jar of water in the fridge, parsley commonly lasts one to two weeks. Mint behaves much the same way and keeps about a week.

Dill wilts faster than either. Give it the jar method or a damp paper towel in a container, and plan to use it within about a week. Feathery dill fronds also freeze well if you won’t get to them in time.

Woody herbs have tough stems that don’t drink much water, so a jar does little for them. Instead, wrap them loosely in a slightly damp paper towel and keep them in a container or a zip-top bag in the fridge. Rosemary and thyme often last two weeks or more this way. Sage and oregano are a little more delicate but still keep well over a week.

Chives fit somewhere between the two groups. Wrap them in a damp towel in a container in the fridge and use them within about a week.

Freezing is the best way to save soft herbs you can’t use in time. Chop them, pack them into an ice cube tray or a silicone freezer mold, and cover them with olive oil or melted butter. Once the cubes are solid, pop them out into a labeled freezer bag. Drop a cube straight into soups, sauces, and sautés.

Frozen herbs lose their crisp texture, so they work in cooked dishes, not as a fresh garnish. Woody herbs are even easier: freeze whole sprigs of rosemary or thyme in a bag, then strip the leaves off while they are still frozen.

Drying works well for woody herbs. Hang small bundles in a dry, airy spot out of the sun until the leaves crumble. Soft herbs like basil, cilantro, and parsley lose most of their flavor when dried, so freeze those instead.