# Freezing Basil



## Seth (Jun 27, 2014)

So, I would like to make some ice cubes - not full pesto. What would you recommend; maybe like just basil and oil (some water??) to make some basil cubes for storage? Vitamix? Processor? Buy a new knife and chop? (no) Smash with mortar? I am thinking a large batch so the hand methods might not be appropriate?
Thanks,
Seth


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## larrybard (Jun 27, 2014)

I have been satisfied roughly chopping the basil a bit (after washing, of course) and freezing it in olive oil (no water). If you have such a large quantity that it's too time-consuming to chop by hand, then I suggest you coarsely chop it (with oil) in a food processor.


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## kielasaurus (Jun 27, 2014)

There is a passage in one of the Marcella Hazan books I have on freezing basil that I thought was good advice. When I'm back at home I'll type it up for you.


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## dough (Jun 27, 2014)

quick blanch and chill will give you better color and the quicker you freeze it the better. by quick freeze i mean using a blast chiller or liquid nitrogen to freeze it in as short a time as possible but those are basic kitchen rules and likewise most dont have those over the top type resources.


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## DDPslice (Jul 4, 2014)

Hmm...what are you looking to do with it? For presentation? Like having a single leaf frozen in a clear glass ball? Preservation? Convenience?


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## DDPslice (Jul 5, 2014)

larrybard said:


> I have been satisfied roughly chopping the basil a bit (after washing, of course) and freezing it in olive oil (no water). If you have such a large quantity that it's too time-consuming to chop by hand, then I suggest you coarsely chop it (with oil) in a food processor.



Larry, have you ever tried drying the basil after you've chopped it? 

Seth,
If you have the time chop the basil and let it dry.

I would suggest using a high proof cheap vodka or grain alcohol (I prefer Everclear 190 proof), 

throw your clean basil in the blender

pour in some Everclear (enough to purée it)

sieve with mesh and/or a cheese cloth into a cup and put it in the freezer
the oils should freeze and will rest on the top

Break part the disk of frozen oil, and store in the jar. 

Drink the Everclear.

on a side note, personally I don't like freezing anything unless the introduction of oxygen and the implications of that are beneficial like in the case of milk to ice cream. For everything else and even for milk the formation of crystals destroy a lot of active ingredients rather than putting them in a stasis, thus diminishing the potency of the favors.


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## larrybard (Jul 5, 2014)

After washing the basil I dry it (only in a spinner, no towel, etc., so not too thorough), but don't attempt to dry it again after chopping it, if that's what you are asking. For the most part I add it when making tomato sauce, if that matters, so presentation certainly isn't a factor.


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## Seth (Jul 5, 2014)

So I blanched, as always, and froze in a cube tray as per Larry. (Hi Larry; hope all is well...) At home that is all I have access to. A dozen plants will provide enough basil for pesto for the neighborhood which is why I am looking for the best method. I once posted about mortar and pestle vs. chopping vs. machines and I tend to hand chop small batches. I like the mortar and pestle but it is a lot of work for larger batches. I will check the frozen basil in a couple weeks to try to assess flavor...


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## larrybard (Jul 5, 2014)

kielasaurus said:


> There is a passage in one of the Marcella Hazan books I have on freezing basil that I thought was good advice. When I'm back at home I'll type it up for you.



As far as I can find, she had a well-regarded recipe for pesto, and freezing it http://www.food.com/recipe/pesto-marcella-hazan-448339 , but nothing on simply freezing basil.

I did find others who had mentioned freezing basil, along the lines already suggested:
"The only trick to freezing basil is to keep it from turning black. One method is to blanch it for 15 seconds, then lay on cookie sheets before zipping into bags. Handling all those individual leaves like that is time-consuming, but it does work. A simpler black-prevention technique is to coat it with olive oil first  kind of like pesto without the fixins. Put 2 cups of packed basil leaves in the food processor with ¼ cup of olive oil. Whir that up, then press it into ziplocks and freeze. Its easy to break off what you need for a recipe and put the rest back in the freezer." http://www.soundfood.org/sfcommunity/sfrecipeblog/93-basil-for-keeps.html


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## Sambal (Jul 5, 2014)

Has anyone compared which method retains the basil flavour best? From my experience dried basil loses much of it's "basil-ness". My very subjective evaluation is that hand chopped gives better flavour than whizzed. Could this be because it's in larger pieces and the basil oil is retained better? 

Wonderful herb, basil. I like all the different varieties of it. We have two main types down under. The so-called "Vietnamese" kind which has better "lift" and is almost floral on the nose; and of course the "Itallian" kind is more pungent and great for pasta, margarita pizza and especially on bruschetta with buffalo mozzarella, tomato, garlic and really good evoo. Holy basil is something else altogether. I don't know why it's even called basil.


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## kielasaurus (Jul 6, 2014)

Larry- That is essentially the passage I was referring to, but is that recipe stripped of everything but the basil and oil not the technique you described in your earlier post? It is what I would recommend for freezing basil, and if necessary (God forbid), go light on the oil. 

Full Disclosure:
I would like to add that I have only tried this on blanched greens like nettles and lambs quarters, not basil specifically, though there is nothing that would lead me to believe it wouldn't work similarly.


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## DDPslice (Jul 7, 2014)

@larry

Ok I was just wondering, because the only time I've had wide leaf basil was fresh or prepackaged(blah) so I never have enough to experiment.Every time I try and grow any kind of basil (lemon basil is amazing)these ******* rabbits destroy it, but my mint survives just because mint is voracious. 

@sambai
I think Vietnamese basil is lemon basil but I'm not 100% and I'm only speculating but I think fresh is more pungent because these flavonoids, phenols and phytonoids are more reliant on the active enzymes within the plant but I'm only guessing, I'll have to do some research and get back to ya.


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## larrybard (Jul 7, 2014)

@kielasaurus : I hope this clarifies the information I've passed along so far: If you look at the link I provided at the end of the language I quoted you will see that it's not something from Hazan. As I tried to point out previously, I don't think Hazan provided guidance on preserving basil, but rather she only gave a basil pesto recipe, and a suggestion for freezing that pesto -- not for freezing basil itself. Maybe I'm confused about what you're asking (or adding confusion), but if you click on both links I provided you will find (1) Hazan's pesto recipe and her directions for freezing it, and (2) someone else's suggestions (in the second link I provided) for preserving basil, as I quoted. Does that clear up anything, or just make it more confusing.

Just one further comment: I think a food processor makes the most sense because it sounded as if Seth -- hello again, Seth! -- had a relatively large quantity of basil to process. If I'm not mistaken -- and the professional chefs who frequent this list can probably confirm whether this is the case -- the better way to cut up fresh basil for any purpose is by using a really sharp knife (which minimizes bruising/blackening of leaves), e.g., by stacking several leaves and rolling them to facilitate cutting.

Now if you only had a really sharp knife . . . .


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