During the season I always ponder on how to store the coriander leaves for weeks. Coriander leaves are such integral part of Indian cuisine and you can't imagine making a gravy dish without the ceremonial addition of coriander leaves. Over the years we had followed different ways to store the fresh coriander leaves, some worked, some didn't. Finally we hit upon this method which really works well.
Amma's younger sister visited us sometime back and she passed on this tip to us. I wanted to try it out right away and was so happy seeing the fresh leaves being fresh over weeks. We have successfully preserved the leaves in it's freshness for 2 - 3 weeks.
I know many of you may know better ways. And this is too simple a method to even record. But I am not really in a mood to write a lengthy post with recipe.
Since Coriander leaves are part and parcel of every Indian cuisine, I am happy finally finding a way to store it well.
Trim the root ends which normally gets sold along the green coriander leaves.
Soak in a bowl of water and rinse well
See the fine dust that is left behind.
Let them drain over a colander
Then spread over a cloth to make sure the water is completely absorbed. If require, put it under fan.
Slowly cover it up like this to absorb whatever water might still be in the leaves.
Take the bowl that you want to store the leaves, cut a newspaper to the size of the inner bowl.
Place the fresh leaves inside.
The stalk can also be stored to be used in Rasams. They add such flavour.
Take another paper cutting and cover over the fresh leaves. Refrigerate. There is no need to freeze the leaves.
This is after two weeks. Of course I have been using and opening it in between.
If required change the paper used to cover the leaves.
How to store Coriander Leaves | Cilantro Leaves
Ingredients
- 1 Bunch Coriander Leaves
Instructions
- Trim the root ends which normally gets sold along the green coriander leaves.
- Soak in a bowl of water and rinse well
- See the fine dust that is left behind.
- Let them drain over a colander
- Then spread over a cloth to make sure the water is completely absorbed. If require, put it under fan.
- Slowly cover it up like this to absorb whatever water might still be in the leaves.
- Take the bowl that you want to store the leaves, cut a newspaper to the size of the inner bowl.
- Place the fresh leaves inside.
- The stalk can also be stored to be used in Rasams. They add such flavour.
- Take another paper cutting and cover over the fresh leaves. Refrigerate. There is no need to freeze the leaves.
- This is after two weeks. Of course I have been using and opening it in between.
- If required change the paper used to cover the leaves.
Other Indian Basics and How to's
Have a great week ahead!
meeso says
Awesome! I'm always trying to find new ways to store my leaves longer 🙂
The Short (dis)Order Cook says
Thanks for the tip! I can never use up a bunch of cilantro before it turns to slime. I ever tried grwoing it myself one season in desperation, but it goes to seed as quickly as it turns to slime. I have to try this!
Radha Rayasam says
Awesome tip. Your cilantro looks so fresh.
Radha Rayasam says
Great tip, your cilantro looks so fresh even after two weeks!
nivedita says
thats a real help for many..
Laxmi says
Thanks for posting.. I have been searching for this since long time..
GEETHA ACHAL says
Thanks for tips....
An Open Book says
this has been really helpful..especially since coriander leaves cost quite a bit out here and is not readily available, not to mention a whole bunch that goes to waste cos it rots in the fridge. im gonna try ur method,
Chitra says
u follow a similar method..i use tissue paper and will change it once in 2 days...
Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal says
Absolutely love the tip. I too had learnt something like this recently. What I do is, after washing, I wrap them in paper towels and keep them in fridge, though cutting ends is also a good one 🙂
divya says
Awesome and great post dear...thanks for sharing!!
Sailaja Damodaran says
Thanks for the tip.
TipsNDeals says
great sharing!!
Nitha says
Helpful one...
Hari Chandana says
Very useful post.. thanks for sharing!!
thendral says
Very useful..Cilantro is bit costly here at Aus. Nice tips.
harini-jaya says
I do it almost the same way! I wrap the leaves in a paper and seal it in a ziploc cover.
anishathefoodie says
What a lovely tip Srivalli. Thank you so much I will definitely use it. Now if only I can figure out a way to store curry leaves and mint leaves lol
Cheers
Anisha
Prathibha says
I do d same way valli..
Sharmila says
Thank you so much for this Valli! I have tried numerous ways but nothing has helped. This is a life saver tip!
Priya says
I do the same way too Valli, even its works out wonder for mint leaves..
Binitha says
I store it the same way...:)
thank you for posting your comments on my blog
Prathima Shivraj says
Thanq for sharing such a useful tip.
Happy Cook / Finla says
I neve rknew we could store them like this , I should send this link to my sis too.
I store them in the frezer ( as i don't mmake indian food every day) i wash them and funley chopp then and put them in a zip lock and freeze them when ever i need them i take from the freezer.
Anonymous says
Hi Srivalli,
Any update on your maid who had the heart disease? Hope she is doing better now.
-Mili
Srivalli says
Thank you everybody!
MiliThanks for asking, she is doing much better. I have been updating the contributors through email, sorry if your email is missed.
btw she was not my maid but my help's daughter.
Janu says
Valli,Thats a lovely post!! Can we store mint leaves the same way?
happybowl says
Seems a good idea, thanks for the post.You have so much patience to take pictures of each and every step. Kudos..
Anonymous says
Hi Srivalli, Good to know about your help's daughter.
I had the post bookmarked when the contribution campaign was on but I didn't follow-up. While cleaning the old links I saw that those posts so longer exist and feared the worst...
-Mili
Kamini says
Wow! I cannot believe how fresh those leaves look after 2 weeks! Mine turn to slime in just a couple of days. Thanks for this tip, I will absolutely put it to use.
Cynthia says
I do all of the above except the newspaper and will definitely do the paper thing - the last step.
Herbs Spices and Tradition says
Good post, can I keep in kitchen towel instead of newspaper.
Srivalli says
If you are referring to cloth towel, I have tried with thin material. Not sure if this works out with thick one though.
Usha says
This is a really good tip. Will try it soon. My mother doesn't wash the leaves but does something similar. Lazy me just dumps the bag in the fridge and sometimes, I end up discarding a few leaves as they rot. Thanks for sharing