Rosemary, the very versatile culinary herb, can be preserved in various ways. Although it's more common to dry rosemary, the herb can be frozen without losing any of its flavor - especially useful if you've harvested very large quantities that now need to be processed. Frozen rosemary tastes the most similar to fresh, but dried is more aromatic.
Harvest and prepare rosemary
Harvest either whole rosemary sprigs or individual needles, using only healthy and undamaged parts of the plant. Wilted or dried up needles are removed. The best time to harvest is late morning or midday on a sunny day, as this is when the plant contains the highest concentration of aromatic essential oils. Wash the rosemary under running water and then pat it dry with a clean kitchen towel. The further preparation now depends on the freezing method chosen: If you want to preserve the rosemary stalks whole, no further preparation is necessary. Otherwise you can now pluck off the needles and chop them as desired, e.g. B. with scissors, a sharp knife or a food processor. However, uncrushed, frozen rosemary contains significantly more essential oils and therefore more flavor than chopped rosemary.
Chop up the frozen rosemary
In fact, you don't even need to bother pinching and chopping the harvested rosemary before freezing it - it's much easier and faster when it's frozen. Simply put the washed and dried rosemary sprigs in a freezer bag and then in the freezer. The frozen needles can easily be stripped from the stalk and crumbled.
Freeze rosemary
Rosemary can be frozen whole or chopped up, and should be used within about two months. Although the herb can be frozen for up to a year, it loses a lot of flavor over time. Shredded (i.e. chopped) rosemary is great to mix with other herbs, such as thyme, oregano, and parsley. Feel free to experiment a little and put together your own herbal mixtures. Shredded rosemary should be stored in freezer boxes, but you can also use ice cube trays for easier portioning.
Make practical herb cubes yourself
Not only can ice cubes for drinks be made in such ice cube trays, but also practical herb cubes that can be used immediately for cooking. There are several ways to do this: Fill either whole needles or chopped rosemary into such a container until it is about two-thirds full. Fill the rest up with either water or a good olive oil. Again, you can mix any different herbs to taste.
tips and tricks
You don't need to thaw the frozen rosemary before using it again - just add it to the pot with the other ingredients and prepare the dish as usual.
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