How to make fresh cilantro last much longer at home

Keep your cilantro fresh for weeks, not days

Cilantro wilts faster than pretty much any other herb. You bring it home from the grocery store, toss it in the crisper drawer, and three days later you're looking at a sad, yellowing, slimy mess. So frustrating, right? With one simple change, you can keep cilantro crisp and green for two to three weeks instead of letting it die in the back of your fridge.


The secret is to start thinking of cilantro like cut flowers. When you get those grocery store bouquets home, you put them in water. Florists keep flowers fresh exactly this way. And cilantro, even though it's an herb, responds the same way. It's still a living plant that wants to drink water and stay hydrated.

Here's how you do it

• First, when you get home, remove the rubber band holding the bunch together. That rubber band is basically a tourniquet choking off the stems, which causes them to break down and decay faster. Just slip it off.
• Then trim about an inch or two off the bottom of the stems with a sharp knife to create a fresh cut, this opens up the stem so it can actually absorb water.
• Next, fill a glass jar or cup with about an inch of water and stand your cilantro upright in it, just like you would flowers. Make sure only the stems are touching the water, not the leaves. Wet leaves will get slimy and gross.
• Now here's the crucial part: grab a plastic bag, any grocery bag works, and loosely drape it over the top of the cilantro, then secure it with a rubber band around the mouth of the jar. The bag creates a little humidity bubble that keeps the herb from drying out while still allowing some airflow. This mimics the moisture in the fridge without suffocating the plant. Stick the whole thing in your fridge, preferably on a shelf rather than in a cold spot right against the back wall.

Every two to three days, dump out the water and refill it. You'll notice the water gets discolored pretty quickly—that's totally normal. Just swap it out. This is the maintenance part that actually keeps everything alive. Also, if you notice any leaves starting to wilt or turn brown, pull them off. One rotting leaf will speed up the decay of the whole bunch, so it's worth taking two seconds to remove the bad stuff.


This method keeps cilantro fresh for easily two to three weeks, sometimes even longer. Some people report getting close to a month out of it. Compare that to three days in the crisper and you're basically quadrupling the life of your herb. You can use this same technique with parsley, mint, and other delicate herbs too.

The other option if you don't have fridge space is wrapping washed, dried cilantro in a damp paper towel and placing it in a zip-top bag in the crisper drawer. This lasts about a week, so it's decent if you're short on room. But the water method is genuinely better. Your cilantro stays fresher longer, it looks kind of nice in the fridge, and you stop wasting money on herbs that go bad before you use them. That's a win.