# Best way to store pesto in the freezer?



## kitchengoddess8

I made some cilantro pesto and may want to keep some in the freezer. Should I store it in a plastic container or freezer bags? 


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## salt and pepper

If you have a Food Saver? This works for sauces and liquids too....I put the contents in a plastic container and freeze, next I take the frozen food out of the container and seal in in food saver bags. Lasts a long time.
   If you don't have a food saver, put it in a container with the least amount of air and add a coat of olive oil over the surface and freeze.


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## GotGarlic

salt and pepper said:


> If you have a Food Saver? This works for sauces and liquids too....I put the contents in a plastic container and freeze, next I take the frozen food out of the container and seal in in food saver bags. Lasts a long time.
> If you don't have a food saver, put it in a container with the least amount of air and add a coat of olive oil over the surface and freeze.



+1. I don't have a Food Saver anymore, so I do the second one  It works just fine.


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## blissful

I freeze basil/oil and garlic minced/oil and pesto all the same way. Spoon it into a sandwich size zip lock bag, squeeze out all the air, flatten the bag evenly, freeze. Then you can stack the bags and when you want some, you break it up easily, take out what you need and refreeze, squeezing the air out again before sealing it. Label the bags. I also keep cilantro (no oil) and chopped chives (no oil) similarly. I keep them all on the door of the freezer, all the herbs and flavorings.


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## kitchengoddess8

salt and pepper said:


> If you have a Food Saver? This works for sauces and liquids too....I put the contents in a plastic container and freeze, next I take the frozen food out of the container and seal in in food saver bags. Lasts a long time.
> If you don't have a food saver, put it in a container with the least amount of air and add a coat of olive oil over the surface and freeze.



I don't have a food saver but it sounds like a freezer bag will work.


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## Whiskadoodle

I use the freezer bag storage system. 

If you find there is discoloration when frozen,  such as yellow, the olive oil will return to its normal color when thawed.   It may look too  army green as well, we only make basil pesto, so I don't know the properties of freezing cilantro.  If we want a more green color, eg company's coming,  we add a little more pulsed basil or parsley and that will green it up again.  I think this last part defeats the purpose of making pesto in batches, so you don't have to get out the heavy hardware extra.


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## GotGarlic

Whiskadoodle said:


> I use the freezer bag storage system.
> 
> If you find there is discoloration when frozen,  such as yellow, the olive oil will return to its normal color when thawed.   It may look too  army green as well, we only make basil pesto, so I don't know the properties of freezing cilantro.  If we want a more green color, eg company's coming,  we add a little more pulsed basil or parsley and that will green it up again.  I think this last part defeats the purpose of making pesto in batches, so you don't have to get out the heavy hardware extra.



My purpose for making pesto in batches is to preserve my harvest


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## kitchengoddess8

blissful said:


> I freeze basil/oil and garlic minced/oil and pesto all the same way. Spoon it into a sandwich size zip lock bag, squeeze out all the air, flatten the bag evenly, freeze. Then you can stack the bags and when you want some, you break it up easily, take out what you need and refreeze, squeezing the air out again before sealing it. Label the bags. I also keep cilantro (no oil) and chopped chives (no oil) similarly. I keep them all on the door of the freezer, all the herbs and flavorings.




Do you just let the pesto thaw at room temperature? Guessing that microwaving it would cook it?


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## blissful

kitchengoddess8 said:


> Do you just let the pesto thaw at room temperature? Guessing that microwaving it would cook it?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Discuss Cooking



Since they are frozen flat and not more than 1/2 inch thick, I break off pieces while they are frozen and then put them in room temperature or hot food. So for cilantro and garlic used in guacamole, I just put chunks of it in there and within a few minutes it breaks up and thaws. If I needed a bowl of pesto, I'd break it up into a bowl and microwave it until it was thawed. If I was putting pesto on hot pasta, the chunks would thaw out on the hot food.


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## Rocklobster

You can put it in ice cube trays to freeze it, bag it and then take out as many cubes as you like


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## Bookbrat

I've tried freezer bags and plastic freezer containers but now we do the same  as S&P....freeze about 1/2" deep in tupperware freezer containers then pop them out and seal in food saver.  Just found some from 2013 in the back of the freezer and used it tonight in risotto and it was great.


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## kitchengoddess8

Thanks for your suggestions everyone! How long does pesto keep in the fridge?


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## GotGarlic

Food will remain safe to eat indefinitely in the freezer. The texture of some foods will suffer; for example, meats can get freezer-burned (dried on the surface) and pasta, some whole vegetables, etc., get mushy after a couple months. Since pesto is puréed, it will be fine for years.


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## kitchengoddess8

GotGarlic said:


> Food will remain safe to eat indefinitely in the freezer. The texture of some foods will suffer; for example, meats can get freezer-burned (dried on the surface) and pasta, some whole vegetables, etc., get mushy after a couple months. Since pesto is puréed, it will be fine for years.




I was asking about the fridge! 


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## GotGarlic

kitchengoddess8 said:


> I was asking about the fridge!



Oh, sorry. Two days or so. It will turn brown with exposure to air, but it will be safe to eat. Just not as appetizing as fresh. I usually either eat it or freeze it the same day I make it.


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## kitchengoddess8

GotGarlic said:


> Oh, sorry. Two days or so. It will turn brown with exposure to air, but it will be safe to eat. Just not as appetizing as fresh. I usually either eat it or freeze it the same day I make it.




I wish I had frozen it right away. I made it last Tuesday and it's still in the fridge. Maybe I should throw it out at this point?


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## GotGarlic

You can taste it if you want, to see what you think, but it really doesn't last very long.


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## StuartCooks

salt and pepper said:


> If you have a Food Saver? This works for sauces and liquids too....I put the contents in a plastic container and freeze, next I take the frozen food out of the container and seal in in food saver bags. Lasts a long time.
> If you don't have a food saver, put it in a container with the least amount of air and add a coat of olive oil over the surface and freeze.





kitchengoddess8 said:


> Do you just let the pesto thaw at room temperature? Guessing that microwaving it would cook it?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Discuss Cooking



I would also do this. Vacuum sealing is a really awesome way of preserving things without canning 

To reheat it you can leave it out room temp, but if you are out of time then just put it in a warm or hot water bath.


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## JustJoeAKABeans

I put the pesto in the old fashioned metal ice cube trays with the handle, freeze solid, take them out in put in small zip locks in freezer, I use my food saver to seal & freeze. (This trick works great for your stocks, freeze as cubes toss as needed for soups or while cooking rice etc.)



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## lyndalou

I've had basil pesto in my refrigerator for 2-3 weeks at a time. Always in a plastic container. I've never had it turn brown and it tastes great. when I use it.


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## di reston

We make our pesto with mortar and pestle to get the best result - it's what most people do, and it doesn't take very long, so we usually make it fresh to use at the most within the week. Put into a sterile jar with a layer of olive oil on the top, and it keeps very well in a kitchen cupboard.  We make mixed vegetables and other things in the same way, or in wine vinegar, and it works very well, stored in a cool place. Bottling is a favourite way of preserving garden produce here, it's part of the culture. Even in the towns and cities, the supermarket shelves stock lots of bottled items, as they reckon it has better keeping properties than freezing, and the food isn't affected structurally as it can be when frozen. I'm perfectly happy to be proven wrong, but that's what we do over here.

di reston


Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## jennyema

di reston said:


> We make our pesto with mortar and pestle to get the best result - it's what most people do, and it doesn't take very long, so we usually make it fresh to use at the most within the week. Put into a sterile jar with a layer of olive oil on the top, and it keeps very well in a kitchen cupboard.  We make mixed vegetables and other things in the same way, or in wine vinegar, and it works very well, stored in a cool place. Bottling is a favourite way of preserving garden produce here, it's part of the culture. Even in the towns and cities, the supermarket shelves stock lots of bottled items, as they reckon it has better keeping properties than freezing, and the food isn't affected structurally as it can be when frozen. I'm perfectly happy to be proven wrong, but that's what we do over here.
> 
> di reston
> 
> 
> Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde




The garlic and basil make storing your pesto with a layer of oil in a cupboard a botulism risk.  

It needs to be refrigerated and used within 2 weeks.


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## GotGarlic

jennyema said:


> The garlic and basil make storing your pesto with a layer of oil in a cupboard a botulism risk.
> 
> It needs to be refrigerated and used within 2 weeks.



+1..


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## di reston

*Best way to store pesto in the freezer*

Hi Folks!

I was curious to find out how they store pesto in Italy, so I contacted my friends on it.hobby.cucina, and, as ever they, were magnificently helpful:

This is what Mardot posted:

Hi, from a scientific point of view, I can't think of a sensible answer, but from a point of view of quality I can!

It's true, we Italians, especially where I come from, Liguria (or the Italian Riviera and the home of all pesto's) keep our pesto in the fridge for a while. But 'for a while' for me is no more than 2 weeks at the very most.
If you keep your pesto in the fridge for more than a month, you will notice a significant difference in flavour (even sooner than a month). So it's true, you're better off freezing it if you mean to keep it for any length of time. That applies only if it's a shop-bought pesto.

Homemade is different. You're better off doing it this way: get you're fresh basil, in bulk, when it's in season, chop it fine, and mix in a top quality light and fruity style of olive oil of the type we make in Liguria. Just freeze that. You can get the other ingredients any time, so you're better buying those as and when you need them, then make up your pesto. Job's a good 'un and there's far less risk of toxins developing.

Now that, to me, makes sense!

di reston

Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## GotGarlic

di reston said:


> Hi Folks!
> 
> I was curious to find out how they store pesto in Italy, so I contacted my friends on it.hobby.cucina, and, as ever they, were magnificently helpful:
> 
> This is what Mardot posted:
> 
> Hi, from a scientific point of view, I can't think of a sensible answer, but from a point of view of quality I can!
> 
> It's true, we Italians, especially where I come from, Liguria (or the Italian Riviera and the home of all pesto's) keep our pesto in the fridge for a while. But 'for a while' for me is no more than 2 weeks at the very most.
> If you keep your pesto in the fridge for more than a month, you will notice a significant difference in flavour (even sooner than a month). So it's true, you're better off freezing it if you mean to keep it for any length of time. That applies only if it's a shop-bought pesto.
> 
> Homemade is different. You're better off doing it this way: get you're fresh basil, in bulk, when it's in season, chop it fine, and mix in a top quality light and fruity style of olive oil of the type we make in Liguria. Just freeze that. You can get the other ingredients any time, so you're better buying those as and when you need them, then make up your pesto. Job's a good 'un and there's far less risk of toxins developing.
> 
> Now that, to me, makes sense!



It does to me, too. And it's easier than making several batches of pesto at once. I'm going to do that to most of the rest of my garden basil. It's starting to get leggy.


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## JustJoeAKABeans

I make my pesto and have those old fashion ice cube trays (metal ones with a handle) freeze pesto in those then remove and dump in zip lock bag


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