How to Store Parsley: Fridge, Freezer and Drying, Checked Against the Sources

Parsley sits in an odd spot. For storing and cooking, it’s grouped with the delicate herbs, and America’s Test Kitchen counts it among the herbs that are better fresh than dried.¹ For drying, though, the National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) puts it with the sturdy herbs that are easiest to dry.² Day to day, keep it in slightly damp paper towels in an open bag in the fridge, and freeze or dry whatever you won’t get to. And be wary of the “fresh for up to three weeks” you’ll see quoted for home storage. It doesn’t trace back to any source we could find.

At a glance

Keeping fresh parsley in the refrigerator

America’s Test Kitchen sorts herbs into hearty and delicate. Delicate herbs take in and give off a lot of water, so they have to stay moist or they wilt. But they shouldn’t touch liquid, ATK warns, because that encourages rot. Its method for delicate herbs: wrap them in slightly damp paper towels, put them in an open zipper-lock bag and refrigerate. In the same guide, a slim herb keeper with a vented lid kept herbs fresh longer than the other containers ATK tested.³

Washing. The Government of Canada says to store fresh herbs unwashed: trim the stalk ends, put them in a resealable plastic bag and keep them in the crisper drawer, then rinse them under cool running water when you use them.⁴ If you do wash parsley before storing it, ATK dries delicate herbs in a salad spinner lined with paper towels.³

Standing parsley in a jar of water. Keeping parsley upright like cut flowers, stems in an inch of water with a bag over the top, is a common tip. We found no named source that tested it or gives a time for it. The closest sourced guidance is ATK’s warning that delicate herbs shouldn’t touch liquid.³ That’s about the leaves, not stems standing in water, so it doesn’t settle the question either way.

Ethylene. UC Davis’s postharvest fact sheet on fresh culinary herbs lists parsley among the herbs that are very sensitive to ethylene, and the main signs are yellowing, curving stems and dropping leaves.⁵ The fact sheet is written for the produce trade. It doesn’t give home advice or name foods to keep parsley away from, so we haven’t made up a list.

How long it lasts.

These measure different things: commercial storage held just above freezing at very high humidity, versus a home food-safety rule of thumb. Neither is a parsley-specific home test. UC Davis also notes that herbs generally lose essential oil and aroma in storage,⁵ so parsley that still looks good isn’t quite as fragrant as it was.

Freezing parsley

Parsley freezes well, according to Penn State Extension.⁶ Rinse it and pat or spin it dry first. The Government of Canada also says you can freeze fresh herbs once they’re washed and patted dry with paper towels.⁴

• Loose leaves. Strip the leaves off the stems, spread them in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze, then bag them so you can take out what you need.
• Ice cubes. Half-fill an ice cube tray with water, put about a tablespoon of chopped herbs in each section, freeze, and top up with water the next day.
• In oil. Mix 1/3 to 1/2 cup of oil with 2 cups of chopped herbs and freeze in trays or small jars. Add oil only if the herbs are going in the freezer, Penn State says, and never keep herbs in oil at room temperature.⁶ Herbs frozen in oil keep their color better than herbs frozen alone.

Use frozen herbs in the same amounts as fresh, straight from the freezer into cooked dishes. They go limp when thawed, because the water in the leaves expands as it freezes, and they generally don’t make pretty garnishes.⁶ We found no published number for how long frozen parsley keeps its flavor. More detail is in can you freeze parsley?

Drying parsley

Air-drying. NCHFP names parsley, along with rosemary, sage, thyme and summer savory, as one of the sturdy herbs that are easiest to dry without a dehydrator: tie them into small bundles and hang them.² Hang them in a dry spot with good airflow, away from the sink, stove or dishwasher. Drying indoors usually keeps color and flavor better than drying outdoors.

Sun-drying. A popular method dries parsley on trays in direct sun on hot, low-humidity days. We couldn’t trace its temperature and humidity thresholds to a source. Penn State doesn’t recommend sun-drying herbs,⁹ because in Pennsylvania the humidity keeps moisture from leaving fast enough.⁷

Dehydrator.

Microwave. Penn State names parsley as one of the herbs that dry well in some microwaves. Its method: washed and dried herbs in one layer between microwave-safe paper towels, about 2 to 3 minutes on high per cup, starting with 1 minute and mixing every 30 seconds while you check for dryness. Two warnings from the same source: the paper towels can catch fire if there’s too little in the microwave, and a microwave rated at 1,000 watts or more may heat too fast for this method.⁷ Paper plates aren’t part of the extension method.

Oven. Penn State doesn’t recommend oven drying, saying even the lowest temperature destroys much of the flavor. If you use the oven anyway, go no higher than 180°F (82°C), for 3 to 4 hours, with the door open.⁷ The 45-minute oven time you’ll often see for parsley has no source we could find.

Done when. The leaves are crisp and crumble easily between your fingers.

What drying does to flavor. A 2005 study dried parsley in two kinds of dryer. In both, the higher the temperature, the more volatile flavor compounds were lost.¹⁰ That fits ATK’s view that delicate herbs like parsley get much weaker once dried.¹ Ratio (Attributed): If you need dried in place of fresh, ATK found 1 part dried to 3 parts fresh came closest on flavor.¹¹ See fresh parsley vs dried for more.

Storing dried parsley

Keep it in airtight containers somewhere cool, dry and dark. Leave the leaves whole and crumble them when you cook, because whole herbs hold their oils and flavor longer. Air, light, moisture and heat speed up flavor and color loss. If you keep dried herbs in the fridge or freezer, let the container warm up before you open it. Condensation can form when a cold container comes into a warm kitchen, Penn State notes.⁷

None was measured on parsley, and they disagree, so don’t average them. To check, crumble a little and smell it.

Parsley in oil

Herbs held in oil can cause botulism. Herbs are low-acid foods that can carry Clostridium botulinum, Oregon State University Extension explains, and oil creates an oxygen-free environment. For fresh herbs in oil made at home, it says to refrigerate and use within 4 days, or freeze. Penn State gives 2 to 4 days in the fridge for oils made with fresh herbs.¹⁵ For dried herbs in oil, the two disagree: Oregon State says within 4 days or frozen,⁸ Penn State up to three months refrigerated.¹⁵ We haven’t picked between them. Oregon State’s rule is the more cautious one.

Not yet measured

• How long fresh parsley keeps in a home refrigerator, measured on parsley.
• Whether the jar-of-water method beats damp towels.
• How long frozen parsley keeps its flavor.
• A shelf life for dried parsley specifically.

Related

• Parsley
• Can you freeze parsley?
• How to dry parsley
• Fresh parsley vs dried
• Parsley substitutes
• Too much parsley
• Italian parsley vs curly parsley
• How to store mint