Make Fresh Herbs Last Longer – Try this trick!
I love using fresh herbs whenever possible when I'm cooking so I've been searching for a way to make fresh herbs fresh last longer.
Wasting anything really is a pet peeve of mine – Â I can't stand buying beautiful aromatic herbs only to just end up having them wilt in the fridge and be thrown away after one use.
I've found a great trick that will keep fresh herbs lasting 2-3 weeks longer – and it costs next to nothing!
Since I live in the big city, space for having a personal garden is pretty hard to come by.  Being able to just walk out into my garden and pick whatever herbs I need would be so awesome but for now I don't mind using bundles of fresh herbs from the grocery store. 🙂
What I don't like about store bought herbs is how fast they seem to spoil. Â Often they've wilted and died only a day or so after purchase and that can be very frustrating.
I've found that the best trick to keep fresh herbs at their freshest for longer is simply to place them in a mason jar with a large zip-top bag fastened over the top using a rubber band. The jar holds a little water at the bottom so you can give those herbs a nice drink – they're thirsty so they deserve it! 🙂
Once I prepare the mason jar with my fresh herbs, I place it in the back of the fridge on the top shelf where it's coldest (but NOT freezing). Â The bag over the herbs almost acts like a little greenhouse and I'm not really sure of the science behind it, but it does seem to work rather well!
Now whenever I need some fresh herbs – in this case, dill – I just grab some from the jar!
For a more detailed instructions please see below!
How to Make Fresh Herbs Last Longer
You will need:
- a wide mouth mason jar
- elastic band – you can use the one that comes with the herb bunch if it has one
- water
- knife/kitchen scissors
- a bunch of herbs
- Take your bunch of herbs and rinse them off with some water.
- Give the herbs a little shake to remove any excess water and pat dry with a kitchen towel or paper towel.
- Spread your herb bunch on the kitchen counter and remove any herbs that look like they're turning brown or “yucky” and discard.
- Trim off a little of the stems of the herbs and discard.
- Fill a wide mouth mason jar with about an 1″ of tepid water.
- Put the herb bunch into the mason jar so that the stems are in the water.
- Take a large zip tip bag and mark the date on it using a marker.
- Open up the zip top bag and slide it over the top of the mason jar so that the herbs are covered.
- Using an elastic band (I just use the one that came with the herbs), secure the zip top bag to the rim of the mason jar. Â Make sure that all the herbs are pushed up into the bag and aren't stuck under the rubber band. Â You may have to double the rubber band over a couple times to get a tight enough seal.
- Now, place your mason jar with the herbs in it on the top shelf of the fridge at the back.
- Take some herbs out as you need them and change the water every so often. Â If you notice some “yucky” looking or dying herbs remove them.
- Herbs should last 2-3 weeks when stored like this!
I hope this post helps you keep your fresh herbs last longer!
Do you have any tips for making fresh herbs survive a little longer?
I love to hear from my readers so please feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below! 🙂
The science behind it: with the plastic bag over top, the water in the herbs won’t evaporate.
what a neat idea, thanks for sharing
I would use fresh herbs more often if I could make them last more. They really do make a huge difference when you’re cooking. I LOVE fresh cilantro. Very cool and useful tip.
omg i am the same way! I love fresh herbs and hate when they wilt away after using them once. This is such a great tip thank you so much!!
Thank you so much for sharing this trick. Now my herbs would last for a longer period of time.
This is such an easy thing to try. I hate buying fresh herbs then finding them in a disappointing, soggy mess so soon after I buy them!
We use green bags. They really do help. We buy fresh herbs all the time when we can’t grow them. Sometimes are garden just doesnt cooperate. I do put some items in wide mouth jars but I haven’t ever put a bag on them. They still seem to last a lot longer.
I’ve seen those green bags around before but haven’t tried them out yet. Maybe I could combine a green bag and the mason jar trick! I wonder how long it would last if I try that. 🙂
I so need this. I cook a lot with herbs and grow them in spring. This is very handy
Such a cool post! We’re going to grow a little herb garden this summer 🙂
Will try this neat trick when I buy my herbs. What we do with out vegetables is wrap them in brown paper before storing in the fridge.
Store bought herbs do have such a short shelf life. I was thinking of growing some of my own this year.
I am with you on herb wilting out so easily. Thank you so much for sharing this tip, I’ll definitely try this as I love cooking with herbs as well.
I’m a big fan of vacuum sealing and freezing herbs. I grow chives like crazy so I stay fully stocked off one tiny plant in the window.
I find it works really well to wash and dry them and then wrap them in paper towels (and put in a ziplock bag!)
This is great to know!!! I’m always buying fresh herbs since they taste so much better than the bottled up ones and they die on me so fast!
This is great! I wish I had tips. I usually use all herbs up as I buy them so I’ve never really thought about keeping them fresh like I should!
Thanks so much for sharing this. I stopped buying fresh herbs, because I never used them quickly enough. Not anymore!
Thanks very much Jackie! 🙂
I love fresh herbs. In fact, I have a whole bunch of different herbs in a box in my room. I blend them to make tea. I wonder if your trick wuld work for those too.
I never have fresh herbs in my house, but if I ever end up cooking with them, I will totally try this 🙂