Freeze drying produces excellent retention of flavour in herbs with soft leaves such as parsley, mint, basil and chives.
FREEZING WHOLE LEAVES
Pack sprigs and whole leaves loosely into plastic bags or boxes. Be careful not to fill the container too much as, by having lots of air around the leaves, the herbs will freeze more quickly and maintain their colour and flavour. There is no need to defrost the leaves before use as they can be crumbled easily when still frozen.
Herbs that suit this technique are: parsley, basil, mint, chives, French tarragon, sage and lemon balm.
FREEZING IN ICE CUBES
Herbs such as thyme, chopped chives, chopped parsley and rosemary can be frozen into ice cubes and added to stews and casseroles at any time in the cooking stage.
Culinary herbs and their flowers such as borage, pineapple mint, lemon balm and parsley are perfect frozen in ice cubes to add flavour to cold summer drinks and punches.