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Herbs add flavor and diversity to your cooking, but you need to select and store them right.
Examine fresh herbs as carefully as you would any produce, and select those that are free from spots,
insect damage, or that look limp or dry. Fresh herbs bruise easily, so handle them gently, and use
them as soon as possible to get the most flavor and aroma into your food.
Some herbs will keep for several days stored in the refrigerator vegetable bin if they are washed,
patted dry, wrapped in a damp paper tower, and then enclosed in a plastic bag with a few holes
punched in it. Herb bunches can also be put in a glass or vase of water like flowers if kept out of
direct sunlight. You can freeze herbs you plan to cook with, but they will be too limp to be used as
a garnish.
To freeze herbs, wash and pat them dry with a paper towel, and place recipe size quantities in
freezer bags. Another way is to chop them up and make ice cubes that are half water and half herbs,
and then store the cubes in freezer safe bags or containers to protect their flavor. Fresh herbs and
frozen herbs before they are defrosted are used in the same proportions.
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