Spices are an integral part of cooking. And they must have been included in all of your shopping lists as an essential ingredient. Most of you could have encountered the problem of storing them and keeping them fresh for a long time without losing the flavor, aroma, and quality. Likewise, you might get the issue about how to store coriander seeds when you bring them home.
Dry spices like coriander seeds should be stored inside tightly-fitting containers in a cool, dry, darker place. Storing your spices appropriately is extremely important to keep the freshness and flavor that could impact the taste of your entire dish. The methods of storing coriander seeds include:
- Storing in an air-tight container.
- Letting your coriander seeds rest in a cool place.
- Try air-tight ziplock bags when traveling with your spice.
- Store them in a dark place.
- Avoid direct steam from hitting the spice container.
So, this article will help you out with the storage process of your favorite flavor enhancer. By the end of this, you will be enlightened with information and will never lose the flavor of the coriander seeds for a really long time!
How To Store Coriander Seeds For A Long Time?
Spices actually do not go bad. They just lose the flavor, aroma, and quality they give your meals. Generally, the shelf life of whole dried coriander seeds is up to 3-4 years. And, moreover, the ground coriander could stay fresh for about 2-3 years.
However, the freshness and flavor will always depend on the way you store them after being used once. And that is what we are precisely going to discuss in this section.
If you are interested in learning something more than this about coriander, we have a fully detailed article right here that you can refer to.
Keep An Air-Tight Container Ready To Put Your Coriander Seeds.
Whether you but ground coriander or coriander seeds, storing them inside a tightly-sealed container that air cannot get in is extremely crucial.
Keeping them perfectly sealed from the day you first use them until the day it finishes will help to have the best shelf life. Exposure to air is a prominent factor in weakening the flavor and shelf life of coriander seeds.
This is highly impacting when it comes to ground coriander. In fact, Ground coriander has a lot more air-sensitive surface area when compared to whole coriander seeds.
Consequently, storing coriander seeds inside an air-tight container helps with the preservation of volatile oils and maintains the flavor, aroma, and quality of this spice.
So, make sure the containers that you use to store your batch of coriander seeds are fitting perfectly. If the container that they originally come from is fitting enough, you can keep them in it itself. But, if not, you will have to transfer the seeds or the powder to an air-tight container.
Glass Air-Tight Containers Will Be The Real Hero!
You can keep faith in air-tight glass containers without any second thoughts. Since many food experts suggest that storing food in plastic containers for a long time is not recommended if you do not know the quality of plastic used.
Thus, if you don’t know the quality of the plastic container you are using, the best thing is to go for a dark, air-tight glass container. We mentioned the word “dark” here because glass containers have a higher probability of getting affected by light. And light is an enemy to your coriander which we will be discussing in detail in a section below.
Let Your Coriander Seeds Rest In A Cool Place.
Being cool obviously implies being at comfort. So, it would be best if you kept your perfectly sealed coriander seed container in a cool place.
When we say cool, you don’t need to have it pop up inside the refrigerator. That is a different topic, and we will come back to that later in this article. A cool place means a place that is not getting interrupted by the heat of your stove, gas, dishwasher, or whatever device that emits heat.
In addition, avoid keeping coriander seeds that get direct sunlight. Even though your container is air-tight, the heat of the sunlight could still penetrate the packaging.
Try Air-Tight Ziplock Bags If You Carry Your Coriander Seeds When Travelling.
What would you do if you had to go on a vacation and take the coriander seeds you keep at home? Well, you actually don’t need to buy a new batch from the store when you have plenty at home.
Instead, use an air-tight ziplock bag to take your favorite spice with you! Make sure you use “air-tight ziplock bags” since you already know that humidity and air can affect the flavor of the coriander seeds.
However, we do not recommend the usage of ziplock bags in the long term use. Keep them stored inside ziplock bags only once you are out traveling.
Store Coriander Seeds In A Dark Place
Light is one of the worst enemies that dry spices would have. Exposure to too much light or direct sunlight can result in photodegradation in spices.
Accordingly, your coriander seeds will also tend to lose their flavor, color, and aroma if they are exposed to too much light.
Therefore, keep in mind to store them away in dark containers or in a darker placer where less light is hit directly to them.
It is much better if you keep them stored in a separate darker place in your pantry with other spices if you cannot find an opaque container.
Avoid Direct Steam From Hitting Your Container
This mainly applies to the container of ground coriander. If you are someone who sprinkles ground coriander directly from the container, it is stored in, and then you might have to stop that habit if you want to extend the shelf time of your spice.
The moisture that emits from the steam of your cooking dish will spoil ground coriander very quickly. You may have the desired flavor and aroma for another one or two sprinkles. But, you cannot expect it for long.
So, get the amount you need to a spoon. And then mix it in with whatever dish you make. Simply, keep your ground coriander container away from your cooking pot.
More Points To Consider
Consider these pre-buying and post-buying tips with regard to coriander seeds. These tips will directly help you with extending the shelf-life and preserving the quality of your spice for a long time.
Buying Whole Coriander Seeds Would Be Your Best Bet
This does not actually mean that you should only buy whole coriander seeds. But, what we mean here does have a reason.
In fact, when spices like coriander seeds stay fresh for an extended period when in their whole form. This is mainly because whole spices can easily break down their volatile, mild oils that give flavor to the food they are added to.
Therefore, buying whole coriander seeds and then grinding them upon your requirement will be the best thing you could do. You might probably feel as if it is a process that would take extra time.
But sill, in this way it will save your money and also the time that you have to spend on the spice aisle of the supermarket, buying new batches of coriander whenever they lose their flavor.
And, on a side note, some pre-ground coriander seeds may contain other additives or preservatives. We think that this rings a bell to you to buy with precautions!
Check The Manufactured Date And Expiry Date.
Well, this could not obviously be a habit of quick-shoppers. But, this is indeed a good habit that you should maintain, especially when you purchase food items.
So, likewise, do it when you buy coriander seeds in your kitchen. As you know that the common norm- “everything is best at the beginning”, applies to most of the food you eat, it applies to your package of coriander seeds too.
Thus, check the manufactured date and expiry date without fail when you buy it from the shop. And then avoid any with a very old manufactured date and if the expiry date is closer. Because they might have already lost their flavor, you will not get the desired results if you take it home.
Be Watchful Of The Humidity
If you are using a humidifier during the winter months, then there’s another possibility that the coriander seeds would get affected by the humidity. So, ensure that your spice container is always well-sealed and kept away in a dry, cool, dark place where no humidifiers could interfere.
Moreover, very hot summer months also could impact the quality of the coriander seeds. Hence, make sure not to keep your spice container open for a long time especially during scorching summer months.
How About Storing Dry Coriander Seeds Or Ground Coriander In The Refrigerator?
As we said that you need to store your coriander seeds in a cool, dry, dark place, you might be thinking about the refrigerator as the best option. Well, let us make one thing clear again.
Moisture, air, and light can be the worst enemies that threaten the shelf-life or freshness of your dry spices. Therefore, storing whole coriander seeds or ground coriander containers should be highly considered.
He who controls the spice controls the universe
Frank Herbert Dune
What the food experts recommend is that not to store the container of coriander you use regularly. Because taking the container out from the chilled environment then opening it can cause condensation forming on the inside of the container.
This will enable your spice to expose to moisture. This highly affects ground coriander result in them clumping and losing their flavor. Instead, you can keep them at room temperature yet in a cool, dry, dark place.
But, if you are a spice lover or a commercial food supplier who prefers bulk buying, then you’d have a chance to store them in the refrigerator. You can then refill it into a separate small container for regular use and let it rest at room temperature with other spice companions.
Before Leaving Our Spicy Pep Talk…
You know that life is always good with a dash of spices going in with your meals! So, learning how to preserve their precious flavor, aroma and extend their shelf-life is very important.
Whole coriander seeds and ground coriander are equally flavorful and aromatic spices that give out their best when properly stored. So as discussed throughout the article, remember to keep them in a cool, dry, dark place inside air-tight containers.
We hope you got the answer on how to store coriander seeds. And, in these ways, you can enjoy the goodness of your spice for a long time with the maximum flavor, fragrance, and quality.
