Preserve fresh basil

Zziggi

Hello Everyone.

I went a bit mad at the bargains in Tesco yesterday. 4 big pots of fresh basil. Despite cheese, tomato & basil sandwiches today, we've still got tons of the stuff. How can i preserve it?

I wondered if i could chop it all up in my food processor with some olive oil and then put it in a pot to save ready to add to pasta dishes. Would this work? Any better suggestions (please)?

Thanks in advance

furndire

If you try and keep it growing in a bright window, always water it from underneath. I read this tip a month or 2 ago on another site, and have successfully kept a plant growing since then. I keep taking some of the leaves off, and they are tending to be a bit yellow, as I don't think we get enough hours of sunlight in this country.
As regards using it, I have frozen leaves and occasionally used them, but it isn't particulary sucessful.
Fresh Basil is my favourite herb.

Quasar

Zziggi wrote:

Hello Everyone.

I went a bit mad at the bargains in Tesco yesterday. 4 big pots of fresh basil. Despite cheese, tomato & basil sandwiches today, we've still got tons of the stuff. How can i preserve it?

I wondered if i could chop it all up in my food processor with some olive oil and then put it in a pot to save ready to add to pasta dishes. Would this work? Any better suggestions (please)?

Thanks in advance

Yes you can, take it from an Italian. Chop it and steep it in olive oil (extra virgin would be ideal, but it's not compulsory). If you like garlic, chop a clove or two and mix it in. You now have the original Pesto sauce.

You can of course just use a little bit now and then to add to tomato sauce etc.

annie-c

If you freeze it chopped up in water (in ice cube trays) then you can use it for months to come.

furndire

Never thought to do that Annie-c, even though I've read about it before.

mah_jong

Zziggi wrote:

Hello Everyone.

I went a bit mad at the bargains in Tesco yesterday. 4 big pots of fresh basil.

Keep some wrapped in a damp newspaper in your fridge, should be Ok for a wee while ...

pmorrisjones

I've grown some basil and again it has run to seed. Can I freeze the leaves (don't need them at present) and if so how? Thank you.

Magentasue

Not sure but I don't think basil is a good one to dry or freeze - do you like pesto? I'd make a couple of jars of that.

serena

I try and pick off the flowering shoots of basil as soon as they form and then they continue to grow.

Samphire

I'll second the pesto suggestion - that's what I did with my enormous basil plant before going on holiday rather than come back to it all wilted and brown! If you don't like pesto you could try making a herb butter - mush basil up with butter, roll into a log and then freeze - you can then cut slices off as needed. I've read that you can freeze basil with a little water in an ice cube tray - it won't look good enough for garnishing when defrosted but you could pop a herby cube into a pot of something. I always end up making pesto with mine unless I'm putting it on a tomato or mozzarella salad Mmmmmm......

freyasmum

I'm not entirely sure if you can freeze it, but I don't see why not? As mentioned, it won't look nice enough for garnishing but you should be able to use it for cooking.

An easier way to do it it to place the leaves into a bag and pop into the freezer and bash the bag a few times once it's frozen - you'll get 'chopped' basil without having to stand and chop it all (I find chopping herbs a bit of a nightmare) and you'll be able to put as much as you want into a recipe rather than having to put a whole cube in