20 Useful Products on Amazon for Growing, Preserving and Cooking With Herbs
Save herbs for home-cooked meals, cute decor and more with these handy gadgets and planters.
No hate on the dried stuff, but there's nothing like cooking with fresh, chopped herbs. The taste and flavor are significantly better, and you don't have to break the bank buying cartons of expensive organic herbs at the grocery store. You can grow common herbs like parsley, rosemary, mint and more at home without a garden or even a green thumb. Plus, there are nifty gadgets that will help you save and preserve herbs so nothing gets wasted. If you're ready to up your game from canned flakes to flavorful, fresh herbs, check out our favorite products below for growing, cooking and freezing herbs at home.
No yard? No problem. The AeroGarden Harvest is designed for growing herbs indoors. You don't even need sunlight. This little hydroponic wonder is kind of like a Keurig but for plants. All you need is water, fertilizer, plant pods (that seriously look like K-cups) and time. And just like a Keurig, it tells you what to put in and when, so there's no worry about over- or under-watering. It's the perfect garden for a novice, but pros will love it, too. Several HGTV editors, including senior editorial director and master gardener Kelly Smith Trimble, own and love them.
This Tabletop Hydroponic Garden Is Totally Worth the Price
We tested this indoor herb garden at the office, and now it’s our favorite coworker.
While it's tempting to throw all of your produce in the veggie drawer, that can cut the shelf-life of your food in half. Some refrigerated items, such as asparagus, actually need to stand up in a cup of water like a bouquet of flowers. This method keeps the stems crisper longer, and many herbs need this vertical treatment, too. Keeping herbs watered and upright can help them stay fresh for up to two weeks! This herb preserver is the perfect size for storing multiple herbs together and can fit in most refrigerator door shelves along with your condiments.
One of our favorite ways to save herbs is freezing them with butter or olive oil to use in skillet cooking later. However, divvying up a block of frozen herb butter is no easy feat. The solution? The Prepworks Freezer Pods are perfectly portioned to create two tablespoon servings, so you can pop flavorful herbs directly into a pan without making a mess of your kitchen.
If you’re a seasoned gardener and you’ve got the space for a larger herb haul, there’s a lot more you can do with herbs beyond cooking. This drying rack is as pretty as it is functional. There’s plenty of space for drying herbs upside down, plus the design creates a rustic-chic chandelier.
There are few more effective ways to extract every last ounce of flavor from herbs than with a classic mortar and pestle. Why do you think they've been around for thousands of years? Plus, the beautiful solid Carrara marble construction of this one makes it a set you’ll want to keep out on the counter.
If you need an elegant way to store several types of fresh herbs upright while keeping them crisp, fresh and oh-so-flavorful, look no further. The Fresh Herb Keeper from Cole & Mason features removable dividers, letting you store a variety of herbs. Plus, it fits in your fridge door for easy access.
While you could use ice pop sticks as plant markers, they will soon rot. The answer? Opt for these bamboo beauties instead. The high-temp carbonized bamboo is durable and rot-resistant while maintaining plastic-free, chemical-free and ink-free construction. Best of all? They're elegantly customized with laser-cut labels for each herb.
For the herb-loving home chef who thinks kitchen tools should be as beautiful as they are functional, this handmade brass herb stripper is just that. The gorgeous hand-hammered tool is ergonomic and features seven different-sized holes, allowing you to comfortably strip small herbs like thyme, large greens like kale, and everything in between.
While herb scissors offer a speedy way to slice herbs, they may not be the best product if you have arthritis. The Crisp Herb Mincer and Stripper, however, is exactly what you need. This little tool rolls around like a computer mouse or a pizza cutter, utilizing five sharp blades to efficiently mince herbs without bruising them. Oh, and did we mention it has a built-in herb stripper?
Unsure where to get started with your herb garden? This Heirloom Herb Garden Starter Kit has everything you need to start a thriving herb garden right in your kitchen, including seeds, trays, soil, reusable pots and easy-to-follow instructions. In no time, you'll be cooking with your very own home-grown herbs.