# Storing herbs and spices



## pepperhead212 (Feb 3, 2019)

The discussions on the "Who needs spices?" thread made me start one on this topic, and made me think of a lot of things I do to extend the life of spices.  It also made me remember setting up my kitchen (in '84!), and thinking, "where am I going to put all of those spices, so I can easily get to them?"  This was way before I got into Indian, and other types of cooking that have a lot of spices, yet I still had way too many to stick on those turntables in the cupboards, and I hated those things, anyway!  

So I used one of the drawers in a cabinet, and labeled the tops of the jars (I had saved those jars for years, when emptied).  To make it easier to locate things, I highlighted them - herbs green, sweet spices orange, and others yellow.  A lot are blue now, but I have to relabel those.  Took about 2 years to totally fill this - now there's another drawer, plus 4 labeled boxes, for Indian, but these are the ones used for most things:  


Spice drawer by pepperhead212, on Flickr

To keep things fresh, I do two things - freeze and foodsaver (my slang for vac/pack).  Before I had a foodsaver, I froze most things, and put enough in the jars to last 3-6 months.  For some things, this was a small amount, others, the jar could be filled.  The ones I don't use much of, I put in those small jars I would get freebies in from Penzey's; I use those for spice mixes I will use slowly.  For freezing, things like cinnamon, cloves, and other potent spices of which the aroma permeates the plastic bags, I'd keep in jars, with rubber seals, and the bags around them, in a large box in the freezer.

Now, I don't keep as much in the freezer - only ground spices (in foodsaver bags), and things like saffron and blades of mace, that I  don't that often.  The whole spices and herbs I foodsaver, and they keep very well, and I store them in an 18 gal tub in the basement.  I have three 2 gal ziplocs labeled Misc. Spices, Indian Spices, and Herbs.  Easy to locate something, when I have to refill a jar.
Here are some foodsavered spices, from the Misc. bag:


Foodsavered spices by pepperhead212, on Flickr

(When I took this photo, I noticed some things that I have to toss!  Mostly freebies, but some that I just stopped using way back.)   

It's easy to refill from those bags - I just snip the corner off one, and pour it into a jar through the small opening.  Then, I re-foodsaver it, and put it back away.

One thing I do with frozen spices, though this might be unnecessary, esp. in the winter, is let it come to room temp, before snipping the bag, and refilling the jar.  If the humidity is high, as in the summer, condensation could occur on the spices, though, again, this is probably just OCD!

I remember when I started cooking, it seemed that I would have to increase the spices in many recipes, for it to taste right.  I thought it was because I just wanted things to taste stronger.  It wasn't until years later, when shopping in NYC, at "The Spice Shop", where I got fresher spices than I had ever found, and I didn't have to double the cinnamon in a recipe any longer!   Cayenne pepper (the only hot pepper I had back then), that's another story...

For years after that, a bulk spice and tea shop in the Italian Market in Philly was my source for spices.  Sadly, it closed, but shortly after that, the only sources started up!


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## Kayelle (Feb 3, 2019)

That's really quite impressive Dave. 

If I had available drawers I'd do the same as the top picture, and would go so far as to alphabetize them. Your printing is a lot better than mine though.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 3, 2019)

Another thing that I forgot about, until I opened a cabinet, and saw my package of these things - oxygen adsorbers.  I use these occasionally in spices - usually ones that I rarely open, but I want to keep some of it out of the freezer, like the saffron.  They remain active for a long time, since there is little O2 in the jar, but this is adsorbed many times after closing it, and the oxidation of the flavor components is greatly reduced.  Besides herbs and spices losing aromatic compounds, oxidation is another cause of their loss of flavor.

These O2 adsorbers are something you _have_ to store in a vac pack.  I originally got a pack of 250 of them really cheap, and when I first opened it, they started warming up!  So I took out a couple, and re-vacuum packed it.  I just take out what I need (I use them mostly for jars with grains and legumes), and reseal it.


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## Cooking Goddess (Feb 3, 2019)

Kayelle said:


> ...If I had available drawers I'd do the same as the top picture, and would go so far as to alphabetize them...


Like this?


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## Cooking Goddess (Feb 3, 2019)

I moved my cooking spoons and rubber scrapers and such to a big pitcher on my counter just so I could put my short jars in a drawer. All of my bigger containers ate in the cupboard above.


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## Kayelle (Feb 3, 2019)

Good job on the drawer CG, but I'd need bigger labels for these eyes. 



A long time ago we had a thread with pictures of all of our cupboards of spices but I can't find it now. Maybe you can.


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## Andy M. (Feb 3, 2019)

I have a corner kitchen cabinet with a three level Lazy Susan where I keep the majority of my spices. They are, of course, arranged alphabetically. I also have a spice annex in the basement storage area where I keep overflow and less frequently used spices. I’m fortunate in that I have a penzeys store close by and I can go shopping there periodically to refill my supplies.


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## caseydog (Feb 3, 2019)

Considering my nature, my tool cabinet and my pantry are pretty well organized. Not in alphabetic order, but my spices are on a rack that I built, my salts are all together on one shelf, as are all of my oils. Pastas, beans, and other canned goods are all grouped together. 

Whether I am cooking, or working on my car, I can walk to a spot, and immediately find what I need. If some of you recall, I recently lost my wallet for three days -- in my house. So, my tool cabinet and pantry are a major accomplishment for me. 

Back before I organized my pantry, I was always buying things I already had, because I thought I was out of them. When you get to four jars of the same spice, you have a pantry epiphany. Now, if it ain't where it is supposed to be, I am actually out of it. 

CD


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 3, 2019)

CD,  Your mention of having 4 containers of the same spice reminded me of another thing that I do - I keep an inventory of all of the extra spices I have.  I also ended up with too many of the same spice, before beginning the inventory.


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## caseydog (Feb 3, 2019)

pepperhead212 said:


> CD,  Your mention of having 4 containers of the same spice reminded me of another thing that I do - I keep an inventory of all of the extra spices I have.  I also ended up with too many of the same spice, before beginning the inventory.



I was an art major in college. Keeping an inventory of anything would make my head explode. Writing out a shopping list is a real achievement for me. 

I am glad I finally organized my pantry. And, I've kept it organized for over a year. Amazing!

CD


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## Addie (Feb 3, 2019)

I too label the top of my daily meds. They are kept in my nightstand drawer. When looking down of them, so much easier to pick out what you need or want. The same goes for spices and seasonings. I just take the cover that is already labeled and put it on the new container. Been doing that for several years. Specially since I moved in here 12 years ago. I have also applied this hack to food stuffs on the door of the fridge. Instead of having to take the jar from  the rack, the contents are written right on the lid. A great help when at the bottom of the jar. 

My sister's fridge was crammed with multiple opened jars and bottles of the same item. So one day when we knew she would be gone for most of the day, her daughter and I took every single container out of the fridge. We each grabbed a rubber spatula and started to combine the likes together. The worse one was seven open jars of mayo. All the same brand. Reduced to two jars and labeled with a black marker. Some, but not a lot, got tossed outside in her lidded barrels. One was an open jar of mayo with a ten year old Exp. date. Way in back of the fridge. We never let her forget that one. Both her daughter and myself made her watch as we scraped that baby into the barrel. We took no chances with her trying to retrieve it later. And she would have. 

Black Markers are your best friend when it come to food items. Name on top of lid, Date bought on label. Just transfer the lid.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 4, 2019)

OMG!  And I thought my sister was bad, Addie!   She also would have been one of those that wouldn't have wanted to toss something 10 years old.  

On a related story, I was forced to clean out my fridge when it died on me, back in September.  The oldest labeled item I had was 1996; though I knew that I had refilled it since then, it was still over 10 years old.  Though salted, fermented black beans will last forever in a fridge, I tossed the last couple tb, and got a new pound of them.  I made something with them today, but that's elsewhere.


I keep those sharpies all over, for marking foods.  Sometimes I forget to scratch out the date, and enter a new, in things I refill, like those 1996 salted black beans!


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## caseydog (Feb 4, 2019)

pepperhead212 said:


> OMG!  And I thought my sister was bad, Addie!   She also would have been one of those that wouldn't have wanted to toss something 10 years old.
> 
> *On a related story, I was forced to clean out my fridge when it died on me, back in September.*  The oldest labeled item I had was 1996; though I knew that I had refilled it since then, it was still over 10 years old.  Though salted, fermented black beans will last forever in a fridge, I tossed the last couple tb, and got a new pound of them.  I made something with them today, but that's elsewhere.
> 
> ...



I helped my best friend clean out what was left of his beach house a week after hurricane Ike. The fridge was laying on the kitchen floor, doors up. If I live to be 100, I will NEVER forget the smell that hit us in the face like a Muhammed Ali punch when we opened that refrigerator door.

BTW, all of my vacuum sealed meats in the freezer are marked with a sharpie. It is amazing how frozen, vacuum sealed meats can become blobs of "WTF is this?"

CD


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## Cheryl J (Feb 5, 2019)

Very nice *Pepperhead*, thank you for sharing!  

I'd love to have an empty drawer like you and *CG* have, to store my spices.  I just don't have an empty drawer I can spare. 

*Kayelle*....found the old thread you were referring to!  Our pics have probably changed a bit since then - I know mine has, a little.  

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f132/penzeys-free-spice-offer-95528.html


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## Kayelle (Feb 5, 2019)

Cheryl J said:


> Very nice *Pepperhead*, thank you for sharing!
> 
> I'd love to have an empty drawer like you and *CG* have, to store my spices.  I just don't have an empty drawer I can spare.
> 
> ...




Oh I'm so glad you found that fun thread Cheryl...


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## Cooking Goddess (Feb 5, 2019)

Cheryl J said:


> ...I'd love to have an empty drawer like you and *CG* have, to store my spices.  I just don't have an empty drawer I can spare...


But I didn't have an empty drawer, *Cheryl*. I had to make an empty drawer by moving all of my cooking spoons, scrapers, and flippers to a 2-quart Longaberger pitcher that is on my counter. Any kind of container that holds cooking spoons would do. Voila, empty drawer!


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## Roll_Bones (Feb 5, 2019)

I keep my spices in the fridge.  I use one of the bins on the bottom.
Yes, its a bit of a pain as I have to search when I need something.  But I buy the Costco sized spice containers when I can.  And the small containers I get from the grocery store go into a zip lock bag in the drawer as well.


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## GotGarlic (Feb 5, 2019)

Kayelle said:


> Oh I'm so glad you found that fun thread Cheryl...[emoji2]


Me too, that was fun to read again [emoji38]

I store mine pretty much the same - my cupboard is fuller now, though. I do keep seeds in the freezer - they can go rancid quickly because of the oils they contain.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 5, 2019)

Cheryl J said:


> Very nice *Pepperhead*, thank you for sharing!
> 
> I'd love to have an empty drawer like you and *CG* have, to store my spices.  I just don't have an empty drawer I can spare.
> 
> ...


Glad you bumped that up, Cheryl!  I never saw it, being (fairly) new to the site, but I'm glad that I read it! 

I remember all those emails I'd get from Penzey's, with deals - often the free shipping with a small order, like that, or if buying a particular item. Never had to be on Facebook, for those deals.  Now, it's free shipping with a $25 purchase, which is hard to be under!


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## Rascal (Feb 5, 2019)

3 tier spice rack plus 2 other spaces, plus stuff in the freezer. Lots and lots of stuff here.

Russ


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## Cheryl J (Feb 6, 2019)

Cooking Goddess said:


> But I didn't have an empty drawer, *Cheryl*. I had to make an empty drawer by moving all of my cooking spoons, scrapers, and flippers to a 2-quart Longaberger pitcher that is on my counter. Any kind of container that holds cooking spoons would do. Voila, empty drawer!




I store my whisks, spatulas, tongs, etc, in a crockery jar, too!  I emptied out a drawer and did that several years ago. I MIGHT be able to empty out another one, but that is more of a project than I'm willing to deal with right now.


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## Addie (Feb 6, 2019)

I used to have a love affair with the Pattern *Blue Willow* Then when I started to lose the strength in my hands I had to switch to Corelle. Much easier to handle. But my sister one year gave me a _Blue Willow_ jar to hold utensils like my collection of wooden spoons. _Blue Willow_ became too heavy as it is made from a heavier clay formula. 

I love that jar. And because it came from my sister who is no longer with us, I will always treasurer that jar.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 7, 2019)

Nothing like those ceramic crocks for freeing up drawer space!  


Ceramic crocks by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Somebody in the family gave me that "Drippings" crock when I set up my kitchen, sort of as a joke, as Dad used to save bacon grease in a container by the stove (one of the things that finally did him in).  I used to have a much smaller container along with it, but through the years, got way too much for even another small one, so I got these larger ones.  Imagine all that junk in drawers???


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## Cooking Goddess (Feb 7, 2019)

*pepper*, I have a lot of kitchen junk and few drawers - 3 15" and 1 9", to be exact. We moved an old dresser of my great aunt's from OH to MA, Himself shored up the drawer floors and refurbished the rails and gliders, and I cleaned it up with furniture oil. I never could decide how I wanted to finish it off, and I wanted to get it into service. It's at the end of my counter run and holds all of the goodies that don't fit elsewhere.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 7, 2019)

Great idea, CG! It's nice when you can fix up an old piece of furniture, and put it to good use like that.


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## rodentraiser (Feb 9, 2019)

I have a ton of spices on a rack on the kitchen wall and another 10 jars on the back of my oven. Now that I know what I use and don't use, I'll probably weed a bunch of them out. Some, like Cream of Tarter, I don't think I've ever even opened. But I go through a jar of parsley, onion powder, and garlic powder about every other month. I've even started shaking some parsley on to scrambled eggs to make them look nice.


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## profnot (Feb 10, 2019)

This is a great thread.  Thank you, OP!

I have been storing my vitamins and medications in drawer in an end table near where I drink morning tea.  Lids are labeled with a sharpie.

Thanks to this thread, I know I can organize a spice drawer well away from heat the same way.  I'll be moving soon and will implement this idea.

I live far enough north that herbs only grow in the summer here.  So I usually buy lots of fresh herbs and make simple and compound herb butters in the summer.  

I cook minced shallots in unsalted butter and broth then add them to fresh minced herbs in a food processor.  Batter is poured into ice cube trays.  Frozen cubes are transferred to labeled and dated baggies and kept in the freezer.  

It's so nice to enjoy fresh herbs in the winter!  

Mostly I toss a cube into a skillet for cooking chicken or pork chops.  Melting a cube to pour over popcorn is fabulous.  Allowing another cube to come to room temp to spread on warm toast is a winter morning treat.


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## Dawgluver (Feb 10, 2019)

Kayelle said:


> Oh I'm so glad you found that fun thread Cheryl...



Me too, Cheryl! A fun trip down memory lane! Mine are also pretty much as they were. I did pitch a bunch of oldies and questionables.


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## Cheryl J (Feb 11, 2019)

Same here!  Over the past couple of years I've tossed some, and put some in the freezer.  I keep learning new things here.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 11, 2019)

After starting this thread, it made me realize that I had a number of  things I had to toss - mostly freebies - though I kept the jars, after putting them through the DW!

And today I went through the sauces and vinegars  on my turntable and dumped the end of some, after looking through them all when making those Chinese dishes.  Back when I used to make a lot more Chinese food, they would store at room temp until used up, with no problem.  The Chenkiang vinegar was the item that opened my eyes (or rather, my nose!) to the perish-ability of some of them.  I learned this early on when using fish sauce - though most books will tell you that it will store forever at room temp, it does go bad!  So that, kecap manis, oyster sauce, and now a few others get stored in the fridge.


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## Addie (Feb 11, 2019)

Management has provided the tenants plots for those who wish to garden. I am going to ask Frank the maintenance manager to have his workers build me a raised bed. I can't be bending down in the dirt with a prosthetic on, and I can't do what I want with just the one leg. A few plants of herbs, and the rest of the space for tomatoes and English cucumbers. Two of my favorite summer veggies. 


If I get brave enough, I may ask for two raised beds.


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## pepperhead212 (Feb 11, 2019)

Good luck with the garden, Addie!  Something you may wish to look into for the cukes and tomatoes are Subirrigated planters.  I have them grow in those better than anywhere else, and last season, after my knee surgery, I had almost the entire garden growing in SIPs.  And I hear that HD and Lowe's have their own, cheaper versions of them.  They are even higher than most raised beds.  Here's a photo of my tomatoes plants in them, only 6 weeks after transplant:


DSCF0716 by pepperhead212, on Flickr


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## rodentraiser (Feb 11, 2019)

Hearing about a raised bed makes me remember the time I brought my Doberman over to my friend's house. Her mom had raised beds in the back yard with fences around them. My friend Kathy was showing me all this stuff and my dog was running around, when we turned to go back in.

"That's funny, " said Kathy, "I could have sworn there were cherry tomatoes on that plant when we came out."

Then we both watched in silence  before laughing until we were crying as my dog leaned over the fence and picked off another cherry tomato to eat. We never told her mom.


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