Adding bunches of fresh herbs to your cooking is the easiest way to add huge amounts of flavor. Unfortunately, they can be expensive and tend to go bad quickly. Here’s a good, cheap, hassle-free way to store your fresh herbs once you get them home from the market.
First, rinse them under cold water, and if you have a salad spinner, spin them in there to remove excess water. Next, dampen a length of paper towels with cool water. You don’t want wet, you want damp. Now, wrap your herbs inside the paper towel, and then put the whole thing in a plastic or zip-top bag, and then into the refrigerator.
Use this method for basil, thyme, dill, tarragon, cilantro, mint, chives, and parsley. And there’s no reason to make multiple bundles, just add more herbs as you’re rolling up the paper towel. This method also works well for bunches of lettuce, like arugala — though I’ve found that these store pretty well all by themselves in those plastic bins they come in. It’s not so great for the woodier herbs, like rosemary or bay leaves. For them, skip the paper towel, and just slip them into a zip top bag, remove as much air as you can, and put them in the refrigerator.
