When you have a large crop of chives from the garden or farmstand, you don't have time to casually include them in complicated recipes or to frantically figure out how to use them up before they go bad without getting sick of them. You want to make the most of your harvest and to actually enjoy it.
Here at Plant to Plate, we like to keep things simple! Here are some of my favorite ways to use or preserve chives:
- Steam them with zucchini and garlic.
- Stirfry them with shrimp and bok choy.
- Sauté them with garlic and zucchini.
- Add them to other sautés and stirfry dishes.
- Add chives and cilantro to corn fritters or corn patties.
- Slow-cook them with chicken and cream cheese.
- Bake them with chicken and zucchini or broccoli. Top the bake with a cheese of your choice.
- Bake them with chicken, corn, and cheese.
- Use them to top a baked or roasted potato.
- Top toast, crackers, or crostini with chives, cream cheese, and cranberries.
- Add them to egg dishes like omelets and quiches.
- Add them to zucchini bread and other savory quickbreads.
- Add them to other savory baked goods like muffins and scones.
- Add them to soups and broths.
- Add them to pasta dishes, baked or stovetop.
- Top bell pepper slices with chives and cream cheese.
- Make a Simple Salad with chives, peanuts, and mizuna.
- Use them as Decor in an Interesting Salad. (Wondering why I capitalized those letters? Read more about Interesting Salads here!)
- Add them to other salads.
- Make a flavored butter.
- Make infused vinegar. Chives make a great vinegar when infused on their own or when co-infused with dill, oregano, fennel, lemon verbena, or basil.
- Dry them to save them for later. See our How to Dry Your Herbs articles here for more information.
- Chop and freeze them for later use.
- Add them to pickles. Chives can be paired with a variety of produce for pickling, including cucumbers, bell peppers, radishes, carrots, and more.
Further Reading
Growing chives? Check out these quick facts like their best growing conditions, companion plants, and expected yields.
Chives are also featured in these articles: