What is Parsley?

Parsley is an herb that is widely grown across Europe.  It is a green leafy plant with delicately scalloped leaves.  Parsley is usually found fresh, but dried parsley is also available.  Parsley comes in a few varieties, but the most common are flat-leaf and curly-leaf parsley.  Flat-leaf parsley is more common than curly leaf and is typically used as a garnish.  Curly leaf parsley, as its name suggests, has curled leaves.

What Does Parsley Taste Like?

Parsley has a mild, fresh taste to it.  When it is not used as a garnish, it is most often used to bring out the flavors of other foods.

How Do You Eat Parsley?

Parsley is often eaten raw, as a garnish on finished dishes, or cooked into other foods.  Parsley is commonly sprinkled over finished pasta dishes, roasted vegetables like potatoes or carrots, meats, or soups.  Parsley is a staple to the French fines herbes seasoning.  It is blended into pesto, sauces, and butters.  Parsley is a staple ingredient to tabbouleh, a popular salad dish, and chimichurri, a marinade sauce.  Garlic and lemons are both frequently paired with parsley in dishes.  

Where Can You Buy Parsley?

Fresh parsley is available year-round in the produce section of the grocery store.  Dried parsley is located in the spice aisle.

How Do You Store Parsley?

Fresh parsley needs to be wrapped in a damp paper towel and placed in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.  Dried parsley should be stored in a sealed, airtight container, such as its original spice jar, in a cool, dry place.

Fun Fact About Parsley

Parsley plants will flower in their second year of life.

Did You Know?

One kind of parsley, the root parsley, is similar in shape to a parsnip or carrot.  This parsley is eaten raw or used to flavor dishes.

Recipes Using Parsley

Fines Herbes Seasoning

Create the classic French seasoning combination by using parsley. Use a cutting board to finely chop parsley, chervil, chives, and tarragon. Mix the herbs together and use over foods like salmon.

Chimichurri

Create a traditional chimichurri sauce with fresh ingredients. Start by finely chopping parsley, oregano, cilantro, and garlic. Then, add ingredients to a bowl and stir in olive oil, red wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, and salt. Serve immediately or chill.

Parsley Pesto

Make a swap in a classic pesto recipe and use parsley. In a food processor, blend parsley leaves, olive oil, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan, and lemon juice. Serve over pasta or as a dipping sauce.

Parsley Butter

Make a tasty butter with lemon and parsley. Using a hand mixer, whip softened butter, lemon zest, lemon juice, finely chopped parsley, finely minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Serve over bread or freshly baked potatoes.

Tabbouleh

Enjoy a delicious traditional salad made of parsley and bulgur wheat. Pour boiling water over a bowl full of bulgur wheat, salt, and olive oil. Allow the mixture to sit. Finely chop parsley and mint. Add parsley, mint, diced cucumbers, diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, lemon juice, garlic, green onions, and red pepper flakes to the bulgur wheat. Top with fresh chives.