How to keep your fruit and vegetables staying fresh longer - 10 easy storage tips
Did you know you should never put fruit and vegetables in the same refrigerator drawer, or next to one another on the countertop? Here’s how to stop some of your favourites spoiling once you get them home
You bring home fresh fruit and vegetables, stash them in the refrigerator, then wonder what the heck happened to make them shrivel, rot or go limp a few days later. Much of the time, the culprit is the way you’re storing them.
To keep your produce fresher longer, remember: fruit and vegetables do not play well together. So do not store them together in a refrigerator drawer, or even next to one another on the counter or in the pantry. Why? Because many types of fruit produce ethylene gas, which acts like a ripening hormone and can speed spoilage.
Vegetables need to breathe. Poke holes in the plastic bags you store them in, or keep them in reusable mesh bags. An airtight plastic bag is the worst choice for storing vegetables, according to Barry Swanson, professor emeritus of food science at Washington State University. And do not pack vegetables tightly together, either; they need space for air circulation or they’ll spoil faster.
Finally, do not clean produce until you’re ready to use it. Washing fruit or vegetables before storing them makes them more likely to spoil; the dampness encourages bacteria growth, says food research scientist Amanda Deering of Purdue University.
Follow these storage techniques to help 10 favourite foods stick around as long as possible.
