Here ’s how to harvest cilantro to relish its flavorful leaves and seeds for sassy eating , drying , or freezing .
Dean Schoeppner
Cilantro is a fast - grow , annual herb that ’s mostly grown for its fresh leave of absence , which can be mix into salsa , salads , and lime Elmer Rice . But once you con how to harvest cilantro leaves , you may need tolet your herbs growa little longer and also harvest cilantro seeds , otherwise bed as coriander . Whether you ’re grow herbaceous plant for leaves or come , you ’ll witness all thecilantroharvesting steer you need below .
Credit:Dean Schoeppner
When to Harvest Cilantro
Cilantro is a cold audacious herb that ’s typically planted in early spring herbaceous plant gardens and harvested before summer hits . But cilantro can also be sequence establish every few weeks through early summer , and again in late summer for an autumn harvest .
When plants are produce from semen , coriander leaves should be ready to harvest about 50 to 60 day after planting . Coriander cum , on the other hand , take longer to mature and are typically quick to peck about 120 mean solar day after planting . That said , some variety of cilantromature faster than others and fast develop coriander may be ready to harvest in just a month .
To get the proficient tasting cilantro leave , glean Chinese parsley in the morning before the plant commence to flower . Cilantro flora are ready to harvest when they ’re at least 4 weeks old , over 6 inches tall , and have plenty of goodish stems and leave of absence .
Most gardenersuse cilantro as a veer - and - make out - again herbin their culinary gardens and harvest stems and leaf as require for formula . But cilantro plants will bolt in hot weather , so it ’s best to harvest the intact plant before summertime unless you require to gather coriander seeds . You ’ll know coriander plant is about to bolt when the flora begin growing elongated stems and small-scale parting that look a bit like carrot greens .
How to Harvest Cilantro Without Killing the Plant
Cilantro can be harvested little by small for cooking , or it can be harvest in a orotund quantity for freeze or dry out . Generally talk , it ’s good to glean only as much cilantro as you’re able to use mighty away since saucy cilantro does n’t last long in the electric refrigerator . However , plants should be harvest in their alone before they abscond or are damaged byfall frost .
To harvest a modest quantityofcilantro for cooking , utilize your fingers or sharp scissors to clip off the stem you need about 1 inch above the grunge line . To keep these edible plants productive , reap the older , out parting of the plant first and pull up stakes the meat of the plant untouched . Small harvests of cilantro can be take every few days without compromising the health of the plant .
To harvest a larger quantityof cilantro , forgather a handful of fore in one hand and expend pair of scissors to clip them off 1 inch above the soil personal line of credit . Even though Chinese parsley is a tight - growing herb , it can be vulnerable to overharvesting , so only harvest about a third of your works at one meter and wait at least 2 weeks before take another large harvest . If you use a lot of cilantro in your cooking , consider growing additional cilantro plant and take smaller harvest from each plant to avoid overharvesting .
Harvesting cilantro on a regular basis can detain bolting and prolong your harvest time of unused cilantro leave ; however , these edible plants will eventually go off and go to seed in raging weather . But bolt can be a safe affair if you desire to harvest coriander seed .
Harvesting Cilantro Seeds
Cilantro seed , or coriander , develop after the flora bolt of lightning and the flowers begin to fade . At first , coriander ejaculate will look like petite , light-green balls , but they rick brown as they mature . Allow the coriander semen to dry out on the plant and then harvest them by clipping off the bloom heads when the seeds twist a abstemious browned color .
broadly pose the cilantro source heads in a perforate report bag and allow them to go on to dry indoors in a dry , dark place with good atmosphere menses . Once the seeds are completely dry , shake them free from the bloom head and lay in them inairtight containersin your buttery .
How to Store Cilantro
Once you get a line how to harvest cilantro from your garden , you need to check that you ’re storing it properly so it ’s safe to feed . Because fresh cilantro wilt quickly , it ’s best to eat on cilantro as soon as possible after harvesting . However , if you harvest more than you may use right aside , memory coriander plant in the fridgefor about 3 to 7 days . The easiest way to store coriander plant is to place cut stem in a glass of water and cover the top of the glass and cilantro leaves with a zip fastener storage bag to lock in humidity . Store the glass in the fridge and interchange the water daily to keep everything wise . or else , cilantro leave can be wrapped in a damp paper towel and stow inside a plastic bag in the crisper drawer .
If you want tostore Chinese parsley will even longer , sweet coriander can be desiccate with afood dehydratorand stored in airtight containers in the buttery , just like dried coriander seeds . Cilantro can also be wink frosty and lay in in airtight baggies in the freezer or it can be chopped and frozen in ice cube trays filled with oil or water supply .
Frequently Asked Questions
That count . Cilantro impart wo n’t taste as sound after the flora bolt , but cilantro flowers are necessary if you require to harvest coriander seeds . eatable cilantro flowers also make delightful salad toppers and theyattract good insectsfor natural blighter mastery .
Cilantro can be slick to grow because it does not handle hotness well . While decamp will inevitably occur , you could slow down this process by arise Coriandrum sativum in partial good afternoon tone , watering plant life on a regular basis , growing ‘ Slow - Bolt ’ cilantro varieties , and pinch back cilantro flower bud as soon as they come along .
Fresh cilantro can be preserve with dehydrating or freezing , but there are many tasty recipes that call for fresh coriander too . If you need to use up a lot of coriander tight , consider adding cilantro to canned salsa recipes , mix it intocilantro pesto , or use it as thebase for cilantro chimichurri .
