Parsley is a versatile and beautiful spice used in many cuisines. It is super nice to have fresh leaves always handy. But sometimes there is really an excess of fresh parsley. What to do with it? How to preserve it for a longer time?
The first thing, as with most herbs, is to dry it. You can then use it for a variety of dishes, like Jordanian spiced chicken, for instance. For this you need parsley in small pieces, preferably powdered. Dried whole plants are relatively hard to powder, at least in my experience. So I did a little experiment: I dried whole parsley leaves and tried to powder them after they were dried and I finely chopped the fresh leaves and dried them. Unfortunately the whole leaves did not dry too well. Although dried at the same place as the chopped ones, they turned brown or pale green. Probably nothing wrong with the taste, but the visual component was missing. And they could not be chopped or powdered. So, chopping before drying is much better if you want a dried powdered parsley. This chopped parsley coil also not be powdered in a pestle and mortar, but the starting pieces were small enough, so OK.
Parsley pesto
The next option for parsley preservation is to make parsley pesto. This is a simple thing, similar to regular pesto or wild garlic pesto. Just use parsley instead of basil or wild garlic. To briefly mention the procedure, mix parsley, olive oil, salt, grated cheese (I prefer parmigiano), pine seeds and black pepper in a blender. Done. Pesto can be stored for at least a couple months in the fridge and is excellent with meat dishes or soups.
Ingredients and amounts for parsley pesto:
- 100 g fresh parsley leaves
- 40 g pine nuts
- 40 g grated parmigiano
- 60 ml olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Steak-mix paste
Another delicious and lasting option is a steak-mix paste. Parsley is only used in smaller quantities, but the recipe is so simple and so useful I have to include it. Just mix the tomatoes (for the moisture), onions and carrots in a blender. Add salt and spices – mostly parsley, but celery, oregano, marjoram or anything similar is also possible. Blend some more and finish. You can store this in a fridge for more than a year and use it for meat dishes, soups and vegetables.
Ingredients and amounts for steak-mix paste:
- 400 g onions
- 300 g carrots
- 300 g tomatoes
- 120 g salt (yes, it is salt, but therefore it is excellently preserved)
- Herbs (parsley, celery, oregano, marjoram,…)
