How to store vegetables and fruits? And what is the best way to freeze them?

You are probably familiar with situations when you buy extra vegetables and fruits that inevitably pass their expiration date, and you do not know what to do with them. To avoid this, it is worth studying the proper storage of fast-selling food and the methods by which you will take care of their freshness. Below are some tips!

Temperature and ... ethylene

First of all, focus on two variables:: storage temperature and exposure to ethylene. The first one is not difficult to control, just remember two rules:

• store ripe, cold-resistant foods in the refrigerator;
• keep unripe, cold-sensitive items on your kitchen cabinet or pantry.

Ethylene, in turn, is naturally produced by plants during the ripening process (usually by fruits). So, if two different fruits are lying next to each other, and one of them emits ethylene, be careful – the other will start to ripen faster. 😉

Examples of products that emit large amounts of this gas are: apples, apricots, avocados, pears, mangoes, papayas, peaches, nectarines, bananas or tomatoes.

Installation:

• Never put unripe food in the refrigerator! At low temperatures, there is no ethylene secretion, so you will not get the expected effect – you will not speed up the maturation process.
• You will get a much better effect by storing these products in a paper bag, at room temperature and away from the sun.

Source: Getty Images

However, let's get into the details:

• In addition to the refrigerator, we store especially fruits that are not yet ripe at the time of purchase – not only exotic ones, but also tomatoes, peaches, plums, pears or avocados. I give you my word-left in the heat, they ripen faster.
• In the refrigerator will not be good and such products as: eggplant, zucchini, zucchini, cucumbers, asparagus-all these lose their nutritional properties as a result of cooling.
• So what to do with the refrigerator? Be sure to get any perishable and soft fruits, such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, currants or gooseberries. Important: fruits and vegetables that end up in the refrigerator must be clean and dry, with the exception of berries, which we only wash immediately before eating! The same goes for novaliekwhich wilt quickly, but also all leafy, cabbage-like vegetables, as well as vegetables such as carrots, celery, or parsley. 

Where to store vegetables and fruits?

Refrigerator manufacturers most often make this task easier for us by using appropriate sprites-most often they select the lowest shelf/drawer in the refrigerator for this purpose.

We also have a group of products with special requirements. Foods such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, or garlic not only like to be outside the refrigerator (preferably in a dark place), but also in one that provides air flow (for example, a wooden box or paper bag with holes).

And finally, a banana - unfortunately, it is the worst companion for other vegetables and fruits, it releases so much ethylene that other products quickly begin to spoil. So keep the bananas away from others. Preferably in a separate bowl outside the refrigerator! 

Source: Getty Images

A few words about freezing

Freezing-along with drying-is one of the most popular methods of preserving food, allowing you to preserve the taste and nutritional value of products! So should you supplement your daily serving of vegetables or fruits with frozen food? There can only be one answer-yes!

However, before you freeze everything you have in the refrigerator, check out a quick overview of what vegetables and fruits are suitable for freezing:

Fruit — raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, cherries, cherries, currants, peaches, nectarines, apples, pears, bananas, mangoes, pineapple, pomegranates.

Vegetables — asparagus, green beans, beans, peas, corn, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, spinach, kale, Brussels sprouts, rhubarb, peppers, pumpkin, mushrooms and herbs.

What is not suitable for freezing? Watermelons, kiwis, citrus fruits or papayas, as well as eggplant, radishes, lettuce, cucumbers and raw potatoes.

Source: Getty Images

What rules should I follow?

All frozen food should be frozen as soon as possible after harvesting. They should be thoroughly cleaned and dried. Small fruits, such as berries, are best pre-frozen on trays and only after freezing transferred to bags. And, as we already do with packages, we always describe them (the date they were placed in the freezer and what kind of product it is) to be sure what we are consuming.

There are certain vegetables that need to be blanched before they reach the freezer. Blanching is a process of short heat treatment in boiling water, lasting several tens of seconds. After this process, vegetables and fruits should be thoroughly cooled. So we do m.in with mushrooms, peas, asparagus, green beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower or kale.

What about herbs? Here we have several alternatives: we wash, dry, grind and freeze. We can also use molds for ice cubes-put chopped herbs in the recesses, fill with water or oil, freeze and use depending on the needs during cooking.

Finally, perhaps obviously, but no less important – we don't re-freeze thawed food!