How to Make Salt-Preserved Herbs

Preserve your garden herbs for seasoning, salt rubs, and marinade bases for up to a year after harvesting

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Growing fresh herbs is one of the easiest and most prolific gardening endeavors. The challenge becomes what to do with all of those herbs once it’s time to harvest them. You can transform your harvest into DIY décor, and you can certainly use herbs in an array of recipes that highlight their fresh, delicate flavors. However, if you can’t cook with those herbs fast enough before they’ve lost their freshness, try this method for preserving your herbs and giving them lasting life in your kitchen. It’s so simple to pull off, yet it has staggering payoff! Use 15 to 20 stems from your harvest. You can stick with one type, or use a variety of herbs together. Gently rinse the herbs and let them air dry. Remove the stems and coarsely chop the leaves. Mix in two thirds of a cup of Maldon salt flakes; you can use regular sea salt flakes as a substitute. Mix until well blended. Store in an airtight, sealed jar (mason, Weck, or any glass jar works well as long as it’s airtight). Your salt-preserved herbs will last—fresh—for up to a year in the fridge. That is what we call an unbelievably long life for harvested plants! You can use the fresh herbs in a variety of dishes. Drizzle veggies with olive oil and sprinkle the herbs on top for a light side dish, encrust meat or fish with the salt-preserved herbs, or mix the herbs into a marinade. No matter how you use them, they’ll add amazing flavor to your meal.