Drying parsley in the oven is the easiest way to preserve excess fresh parsley.A small bunch (30 grams) produce about a heaped tablespoon of dried parsley.
Servings1 tablespoon
Ingredients
- 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 170 °F.
- Wash the parsley with cold water. You can include the tender parsley stems – they have loads of flavour. But remove any brown bits – leaves and stems.
- Dab the wet parsley with a clean tea towel or paper towel to remove excess moisture – or use a salad spinner.
- Place the parsley on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer with enough surrounding space. Put the baking tray in the centre of your preheated oven.
- Check on the parsley after 20 minutes. The parsley is ready when you can easily crumble it with your fingertips. But it should still be green. If the parsley is still moist, return it to the oven for another 5 minutes.
- Use your fingertips to crumble the dried parsley into coarse flakes. Discard any large pieces of leaves or stems that don't crumble. I like to rub the parsley through a mesh strainer for finer parsley flakes – or use a pestle and mortar.
- Transfer your dried parsley to an airtight container or spice jar.
Notes
- This method also works with the curly parsley variety. But I prefer the intensity of flat-leaf parsley (also called Italian parsley). So, this is what I typically plant.
- As long as your parsley is completely dried out, it will keep in an airtight container for up to 6 months. But, if there are any wet bits, the parsley will be susceptible to mould. If you see signs of mould, discard the parsley.