How to Freeze Herbs in Olive Oil
Has your herb garden been hit by frost yet? If it hasn’t, now is a good time to give them a trimming before you miss the chance. It will also save you a little spring cleanup!
Although the herb drying is appealing to me, I don’t have a dehydrator, nor the ideal environment to offer them. Some of the coarse herbs like rosemary or savory just don’t dry out as easily. It’s also likely that toward the end of the season even the more tender herbs will begin toughening up with the cooler weather. You can mix herbs or keep them separate to best suit your cooking habits. This method captures the color and flavor and texture of your fresh herbs quite well! Plus, it makes it super simple to just grab a couple cubes when you go to saute veggies or start a soup and enjoy!
Freezing Herbs in Olive Oil
1) Clean and chop herbs into pieces that will fit into your ice cube cubbies.
2) Portion them out in an ice cube tray (I found that the silicone trays or more flexible ones work better)
3) Pour your choice of olive oil over them. (You could also use a blend of olive oil and butter)
4) Put them in the freezer until solid enough to handle.
5) Pop them out and put them into a sealed container for the freezer. Work quickly, as the olive oil will begin to melt.
Before you freeze anything in a glass jar, please read our post Freezing in Canning Jars 101.
So no quart sized jars are safe for the freezer? Am I reading the chart wrong? Thank you in advance for your answer.
Hi Renee,
Many of our customers choose to freeze in Ball’s 24 ounce wide mouth jars. It has no shoulders and is a great larger sized jar for freezing. https://www.fillmorecontainer.com/blog/j65500-case9ball-kerr.html
Question, can you use coconut oil instead for freezing herbs?
Hi Lin,
We have not tried using coconut oil for freezing. I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. I would pour it into your ice cube tray in liquid form. Let us know how it works for you!