While using fresh chives just after harvesting is considered a great way to benefit from it, there is time you want to freeze it for later use, and for sure you want to ask, do you wash chives before freezing?, the answer is absolutely yes, firstly you want to keep your herb spotless before the freezing process, using running cold water will be ideal, to make sure you remove any dirt and any additional soil or some chemical fertilizers that been used during the growing, this will keep you herb useful as possible when refrozen it.

Furthermore, we have covered all what you may need in the process of freezing this herb with more useful information such as: how to freeze it, and how to use your frozen herb, and much more, without any further delays, let’s get to it.

You will find in this topic:

 

 

 

1 can you freeze chives whole?:

Different from many other herbs, you can either way freeze chives as a whole plant like you harvested it or bought it, or like chopped and prepared for faster use, the both methods are quite do well in the fridge and the frozen process, as these methods of cuttings will not prevent you from keeping the powerful flavor of it, and use it like the fresh ones normally.

Additionally, you must ensure that the chosen herbs for the freezing are completely healthy and not wilted or yellow, this is to benefit from the herb perfectly and to avoid any spoil during this process.

 

 

 

2 Can you freeze fresh chives garden?:

The fresh herbs just picked up from your garden are considered the most ideal ones than the other ones bought from store, you may not buy fresh ones as like as the newly harvest and fresh one, just pick those and prepare them for the freezing, and they are good to go.

Furthermore, if you want to benefit the most from your fresh herbs, you should consider picking and harvesting them in the first morning, by that time the plant has the most useful oils in it, also it will be containing the good fluids in it, you may consider also picking them just before the blooming time as it will be full of nutrients that will be as good as fresh ones when you refroze your herbs.

 

 

 

3 how to freeze chives in plastic bag: step-by-step guide:

now that you have your fresh herbs or store bought one, it is time to the freezing process, like we mentioned previously, pick the good ones to use, there are mainly two ways to freeze chives, either in plastic bag/container, or by ice cube tray, and we will cover both ways, firstly we begin by plastic bag, to do so follow these steps:

 

1. pick your herbs by your hands and put them under cold running water, clean them from any dirt or anything unordinary, you can even use a small container to rinse and wash to perfectly eliminate unwanted things.
2. after that, dry them using some towel to remove the water from them.
3. now you can use them directly or cut them into small pieces, you can even chop them into very small cuttings, all the previous are good for your plants, and it is only depends on your future needs, so you have multiple choices.
4. put them in the plastic bag, using the sealed bags is considered perfect to keep them without air.
5. now if you cave small vacuum sealer, it will be perfect to pull the air from the sealed bags, if not that’s ok you can use small juice pipe, to do so put your herbs in the bag and put the juice pipe in the end, now seal the bag in which you ensure to close it and the pipe is in there, after that pull the air out with your mouth, (just like the job of the vacuum sealer).
6. after making sure there is no air inside left, pull out the pipe and close it, by doing these steps, your herbs are ready to be frozen.

 

 

4 freezing chives in ice cube trays:

like we mentioned before, the other way is freezing chives in ice cube trays, typically this most handful and easy when refrozen your herbs, as it will be ready to use directly in your cooking without any additional thing, to do so follow these steps:

 

1. pick your herbs and clean them like the previous method.
2. cut your herbs into small pieces to fit the ice cube trays, half inch or inch will be a good size.
3. put the half of ice cube trays with your herbs.
4. now you have two options, either you fill the rest of ice cube trays with only water, or use the oil olive above them, the two ingredient are great, but using the olive will be great to preserve the flavor, note that using water is also a good thing way for freezing chives like most people do.
5. put them in the refrigerator and let them be fully frozen, 24 hours will be a good time.
6. get your ice cube trays out from the fridge.
7. take out the herbs from it, now pack them in the plastic bag and seal it.
8. now your freezing herbs are ready to put them in the fridge for future uses.

 

 

 

 

5 how long the frozen chives last in the fridge?:

The freezing process is considered one of the best ways to preserve your herbs for later, in our case frozen chives either using sealed bags or ice cube trays up to 6 months, it can even last up to a year if you have a good refrigerator and your herbs are frozen properly with the ideal temperature, which is between 55 to 60° Fahrenheit, by this way you can enjoy with your herbs in the future. read about drying chives in the dehydrator. 

 

 

 

 

6 how to use frozen chives :

using frozen chives will be likewise the fresh ones, if you want to use your frozen ice cubes, you can pull what you need and use them in the soups and hot meals to add the flavor to them, if you are using the frozen herbs as a plant the uses will be unlimited, it can be used in salads or above eggs or soups also, it only depends on where you want to add the flavor in.

in addition, your frozen herbs will not lose neither the flavor nor the taste, as matter in fact, it will be as the fresh ones you just picked, so will not lose a thing by considering freezing this wonderful herb.

 

 

 

7 conclusion:

 

to sum up the previous, washing your herb before the freezing is necessary, you can freeze as it is or chop it into pieces to satisfy your needs, it can be frozen in the zip plastic bags and ice cube trays also, the best temperature for the freezing is 55° to 60° F, it can last for 6 months in the fridge, a year if conditions are perfect, you can use your frozen herbs like the fresh ones.

 

At the same time, you can enjoy and benefit the most if you consider growing this herb in your home, easy thing to do and nothing great more than eating your own food, with you enjoyed with this topic, if you have any additional opinions, share it with me in below.