How to store coriander leaves and keep cilantro fresh

How many times have you seen your herbs and vegetables wilting, turning yellow, or rotting while you were waiting for that one day to use it for that one thing?  I have done over a hundred times.  The amount of coriander leaves, curry leaves, and mint leaves I have wasted so far is unbelievable.  Not to mention other greens, fresh herbs, vegetables, and fruits.  For some damn reason I have usually not been able to consume my grocery quick enough or store them up long enough.  Fed up of my wasteful self, I had to find ways to keep the produce fresh.  Especially figure out how the heck should I store and coriander leaves fresh.

I have been taking steps to store berries or at least make something out of them and freeze.  Worked on canning pineapple to preserve it than throwing extra pineapple pieces away.  Worked on not wasting fenugreek leaves and my time on them.

And this time, I tested ways on how to keep cilantro fresh for a long time and find out what's the best way to store cilantro. Here are my experiments and results.

(Yes, coriander leaves and cilantro is the same thing.)

Washed, wrapped in newspaper and put inside ziploc bag, stored in refrigerator. after 16 days ...   pale, stale, and stinky.  washing and wrapping is not a good idea.	Unwashed, wrapped in newspaper and put inside ziploc bag, stored in refrigerator. after 16 days ...  not bad, but beginning to dry up and lose moisture.  not as fresh.
Washed, wrapped in paper towel and put inside ziploc bag, stored in refrigerator. after 16 days ...  uh-oh.  to be trashed.  washing beforehand is not a good idea.	Unwashed, wrapped in paper towel and put inside ziploc bag, stored in refrigerator.  after 16 days ...  not bad.  looks fresh too.  this is a good way to store cilantro.
In water, in refrigerator placed on top shelf, light from within the refrigerator, in cool temperature, trimmed stems & changed water every 5 days.  after 43 days ...  couldn't believe they lasted this long.  this is a GREAT way to store cilantro leaves fresh for a long time.	In water, outside refrigerator placed on countertop, enough natural light, at room temperature, trimmed stems & changed water every 5 days. after 16 days ...  not a bad idea, but leaves beginning to fade and turn yellow faster than when stored inside refrigerator.
Washed & dried few sprigs washed & left out to dry on newspaper for 3 days.  turned into dried / powdered cilantro (when rubbed) that could be used while cooking (such as in dals or curries) but not for garnish.  lost half of its flavor.	Washed & froze 1 Tbsp packed chopped cilantro dunked in 1 Tbsp water, frozen into ice cubes.    released dark color dirty water after thawing that had to be discarded.  cubes could be used for making chutneys or while cooking (such as, in dals) but not for garnish.

How do you store and keep cilantro or even other greens fresh for long time?  Add a valuable comment below.

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