How To Chop Parsley

Parsley is the name of a biennial herb that is commonly used as a spice in cooking. Used in almost the same way as coriander, it mainly finds use in Middle Eastern, European and American cuisines. The herb not only makes food look good, when garnished, but is also a rich source of many important nutrients in the body, like antioxidants, folic acid and vitamin C. There are basically two types of parsley - curly leaf parsley and flat leaf or Italian parsley. Of the two, it is the former that is more commonly used for garnishing, as the latter tends to have a bit stronger flavor. Whatever variety of the parsley you use, you need to chop it first. In case you need any help, go through the following lines and find tips on how to chop parsley.

Chopping Fresh Parsley

With A Knife

First of all, you need to give the parsley leaves a thorough wash. Thereafter, shake them dry.
Place the cutting board on your kitchen counter and put the bunch of parsley leaves flat against it.
Hold the knife in your dominant hand and gently place it over the parsley leaves. The other hand will be holding the tip of your knife.
Holding the tip in place, start moving your dominant hand up and down, chopping the parsley.
Keep on moving the knife and working it around the pile of parsley, until the leaves are cut as per your liking.

With Kitchen Shears

You will start the cutting procedure by rinsing parsley leaves thoroughly with water and shaking them dry.
Take a scratch-resistant bowl and put all the parsley leaves in it.
With the helping of kitchen shears, start snipping the parsley.
Keep on snipping, with the shears, until parsley leaves have been chopped as per your liking.

Storing Parsley

The chopped leaves of parsley should be kept in paper bag and stored in refrigerator, where they will keep fresh for 3 days.
Always prefer buying them fresh instead of getting those that are one or two days old. The bunch with yellow leaves represent matured or spoiled parsley and hence should be avoided.
Fresh parsley leaves should be stored in the same way as a flower. The stems of the leaves should be cut and placed in a plastic bag, with a sample of cold water, at room temperature. Remember to change water every two to three days.
You can even store the parsley leaves in damp paper towel, as it will keep the leaves moist and fresh. This way, they will keep for two weeks.

Serving Ideas

Besides garnishing, the parsley leaves give a distinctive flavor to soups and tomato sauces.
The best combination of parsley leaves is with potato, rice dishes and meat.
Parsley is one of the main ingredients used in the Middle Eastern cuisine, like tabbouleh.
The French cuisine uses a mixture of this fragrant, along with equal parts of minced parsley, chervil, chives and tarragon.

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