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| The fresh dill is gorgeous right now, it is self seeding, so I don't control the timing. The Cucumber vines look great, but won't start to bear for some time. What is the best way to preserve the Dill so that I can use if for canning and fermenting when the Cukes are ready? From experience, I know it will be pretty meager later in the season. TYIA!! Steve |
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| Difficult to keep it fresh. You can store it in the fridge for a week to 10 days, freeze it but it will go soft and mushy. The best IMO is to dry it. Easy to do in the microwave and then store it in a glass jar until time to use. But it will change the measurement in the pickle recipes as the dried will have a stronger flavor. I use 1/4 to 1/3 the amount called for when using dry herbs, especially when they are fresh dried. You can always add more later but you can't remove it once added. Dave |
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| I have a Tupperware container full of dill in the freezer. It works great in pickles. One minor scheduling issue I think Mother Nature got really wrong - dill is NEVER ready at the same time as cucumbers. Pick it, strip off the fronds/weed/leaves and the seed heads. Don't wash it. Don't blanch it. Just put it loosely packed in a rigid freezer-safe container - no vacuum sealing! You don't want it all smushed together. Mine has never been soft or mushy. I use it all year round in dips and sauces. I just opened the container from last summer to take a sniff, and it smells and tastes like I just picked it. Sorry, but I think dried dill is a poor substitute for "fresh from the freezer" dill. Just my opinion. Learned this tip from Deanna a few years ago - thanks, Deanna! |
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| That's a good tip Malna - I'll have to give it a try this year. Dave |
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- Posted by naturegirl_2007 5B SW Michigan (My Page) on Tue, Jul 1, 14 at 22:21
| Try cutting your dill as you would cut flowers. Store the cut dill as others suggest. However, you may be able to use fresh dill at a later date since the trimmed plants will often put out new growth and flower again. |
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| Gee Malna, thanks for saving me all the typing! :) The only thing I do differently is that I smash the head flat and store in a ziploc bag with all the air pressed out. The flat heads lay nicely along the side of the jar while you fill with cukes. Yes, it's a bit softer, but it gets that way after pickling anyway! Deanna |
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| Thanks everyone, looks like freezing is it! Steve |
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| "Pick it, strip off the fronds/weed/leaves and the seed heads. Don't wash it. Don't blanch it. Just put it loosely packed in a rigid freezer-safe container - no vacuum sealing! You don't want it all smushed together. " Malna, this is extremely helpful. I had no idea this could be done. Thank you. Deborah |
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| Deborah, Don't thank me - it was all Deanna's idea :-) How are you doing? Hope everything healed well! |
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- Posted by lizgross144 5a (My Page) on Thu, Jul 3, 14 at 14:38
| I just cut off all my dill heads and froze them today (I did that a few years ago and it worked great), and it looks like I"ll have a few more to cut off next week.. I also started some late dill with the hopes that it will be ready when my cucumbers are. Can I leave the now headless dill in the garden and harvest the fronds as I need to use them, or will it get woody? |
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| "How are you doing? Hope everything healed well! I'm doing very well. My range of motion is nearly what it was before the break, thanks to my husband who made me work it all the time. How thoughtful of you to ask! And thanks to Deanna for the idea. Deborah |
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| Deborah, Glad to hear you're almost back up to snuff :-) |
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| lizgross144, In response to your question "Can I leave the now headless dill in the garden and harvest the fronds as I need to use them, or will it get woody?" I can relate my experience doing that. Success seems to depend on the stage the seed heads are when I harvest them. If they've already made seeds, usually the fronds don't grow much, if at all, and the plant doesn't seem to survive very long. The fronds don't get woody, but the stem usually dies back. I'm assuming the plant is thinking "My work is done - I made seeds." If I harvest them while they are still flowers and not quite into seed production, often I will get a new flush of growth and occasionally another seed head. Anyway, that's what my self-seeding dill does. |
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