The other day Sprouts was having a sale on organic fresh cilantro. SCORE! We love cilantro. So I headed to said store and bought a few bunches! At $.75 a pop I was in organic herbie heaven. (Yes I have tried to grow my own....it was (sadly) a no go....)
There were a few things I had in my mind to make- so this was the best timing!
Problem: I bought waaaay too much. I mean, these "bunches" were huge! Honestly, the biggest bunches of cilantro I'd ever seen. Thanks Sprouts! Didn't stop me from getting a million though. Ok, maybe 2 or 3. So I made a few recipes, we ate some of it up...but come a few days later the remaining cilantro I had washed and stored was beginning to wilt and look oh so sad!
Confession- I HATE HATE HATE (like with a massive burning passion inside my soul) wasting food. If anything ever reaches it's "throwing away" point, I seriously mourn over it. Not. Even. Lying. Haha.
I digress. So! Not wanting to see my beloved fresh herbs end their delicious life in a trashcan, I quickly whipped up a batch of what I think is the easiest thing one will ever make- cilantro "oil".
Not only does this prolong your fresh herb's life, BUUUUUuuuuUUUUUUT it also creates a super flavorful, unprocessed, and oh so yummy natural ingredient you can keep in the fridge and add to many recipes! Think of it as a Super Duper Flavor Booster-er.
There are no measurements! GASP!
Stay with me. You can't mess this up. I promise.
Basically you'll take the amount of fresh herb you have remaining (doesn't have to be cilantro!- basil, tarragon, dill...) and blend it to oblivion with as much good quality olive oil that you need to create a loose, viscous paste. You're going for a "on the thicker side of things" vinaigrette consistency. Try to stay from too many stems.
That's it.
For my "oil" I had about a cup of fresh cilantro leaves left over. I added it to my food processor and drizzled in about 1/3-1/2 cup of organic extra virgin olive oil while the processor was running. After about 20 seconds everything started spinning around nicely and it eventually became a nice, loose, herbie goodness.
Then just pour into an air tight container (I used a mason jar) and store in the fridge. Will last another 5 days there!
What the heck do I do with it??
- Use as a marinade for fish, meat, poultry, tofu or veggies! Just spoon some on desired food, rub in, and allow to marinate 2 hours- or even overnight!
- Mix in chopped garlic, an acid of some sort (lemon or lime juice, vinegar, etc), salt + pepper to taste and spread on meat or veggies before grilling!
- Make a pot of brown rice and stir in a few spoonfuls once rice is completely cooked!
- Stir into soups for a flavor boost!
- Mix into cubed, boiled, and drained potatoes for a delicious potato salad OR mix into freshly roasted potatoes!
- Shoot, for that matter, mix into mashed potatoes (or mashed cauliflower) for a punch!
As for us, I simply rubbed some of my cilantro "oil" over a cut up organic chicken, drizzled some lemon juice over the whole thing, and sprinkled some sea salt and pepper last minute. Then, I baked uncovered for 40 minutes and viola!
We are cilantro-aholics over here too! But sometimes I buy a big bunch and use it 10 different ways (okay that was an exaggeration, but a few) and I still have it left over. I feel bad seeing it shrivel up and die. :( So thanks for the oil idea!
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, I had a bit of time while feeding the baby and I thought, I'll watch a Felicity episode. So i watched my favorite episode, The Aretha Theory. It made me happy. And I thought about you and how we bonded over Felicity. :)
Awwww Yes Felicity! We totally did! Actually- was DC before or after Felicity? Because we bonded over that show too. I think Felicity was first, you're right. Those were good times. Did we ever talk about Alias???
DeleteI have yet to see Alias... but no worries, it's on the list!!! I've only heard good things!! :)
DeleteThis looks absolutely delicious. We share the same food wasting problem. Have a wonderful day Christina.
ReplyDeleteHehehe, yeah I just can't seem to throw ANYTHING away when it comes to food. Non-food items? SEE YA. Haha. I hope you'll enjoy this Melissa!
DeleteThis is such a good idea! I've always got leftover cilantro. ALWAYS! I hate throwing it out too. I've got some in the fridge right now.......
ReplyDeleteTrish
www.jellybonesblog.blogspot.com
AWESOME!!! Enjoy!
DeleteThis looks so easy. My husband loves mexican food, so naturally we use a lot of cilantro at my house. What a good way to mix it up a bit. Thanks for the idea.
ReplyDeletexxAndee
www.shabbykitteh.blogspot.com
You're so welcome!!!! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!!!
Delete