Proper Fruit Storage
- and Vegetables too!-
Tips to Make Your Produce Last Longer

Who knew that correct fruit storage could make such a difference? Making my produce last longer not only saves money, but extra trips to the market.

Frozen versus Fresh

I used to believe that food was only healthy if it was fresh and expensive. I learned that fresh or frozen fruit and fresh, frozen or canned vegetables can be equally nutritious. Canned fruits often contain sugar syrup, so I eliminated these from my shopping list. To watch my budget, I buy fresh fruit and vegetables in season and frozen fruits and vegetables as needed to provide my family a variety of options.

Fresh Fruit Storage and Consumption

Every two weeks, I go to a nearby produce market to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables that are in season. I read that involving my children in picking our produce would make them more interested in eating a variety of choices.

So I hand my oldest daughter a plastic bag and tell her to choose some pears. She decides the best pear available in the pile is the third one from the bottom. Amid her screams, several hundred pears come cascading down the mound and onto the floor. I begin apologizing to the store manager, which is becoming a distinct trend in my grocery shopping.

After several apple and cantaloupe avalanches, I realize I should limit my shopping frequency at the produce market. I make it home with the produce, but then worry about how to consume it before it rots.

I never thought I would be applying my corporate management skills to a bunch of bananas and pears.

With a little planning, we eat the produce that will spoil first, and work our way through the other produce as the week progresses. To avoid conducting a séance to bring my lettuce back to life, I found the following tips help keep produce fresh:

• Do not wash produce until you are ready to eat it.

• Store fruits and vegetables separately.

Fruit Storage

1. Fruits like low moisture. Although I was previously unaware of the science of fruit storage, I now store unwashed strawberries on a paper towel in a sealed plastic storage container. Berries last about three days so we eat them first.

Berries, oranges, pineapples, cherries, grapes and watermelon do not ripen after picking, so I put them directly into the refrigerator. Lemons and limes can be kept on the counter, but last longer in the refrigerator.

2. Ripen certain fruits on the counter and move them to the refrigerator when they are soft to the touch. Unripe pears, apricots, peaches, plums, mangoes, honeydew melons, cantaloupes, bananas, kiwis, and avocados can soften on the counter. Once they turn soft to the touch, move them into the refrigerator.

Apples will also continue to ripen. Put unbruised applies in the refrigerator to keep them crisp for many weeks

3. I buy my bananas green, and let them ripen as I eat other fruit that will spoil first. Banana skins turn black in the refrigerator, but the fruit will still taste the same. When my bananas are overly ripe, I prefer to peel them, put them in small food or fruit storage bags and freeze them for smoothies.

Vegetable Storage

2. Too much moisture can be bad for your vegetables, and brown spots will develop especially on lettuce if it is too damp.

3. I store my tomatoes on the counter and only chill them right before serving.

4. Potatoes, onions, eggplant, and hard shell squashes should be stored in a cool, dry place.

Dried and Canned vegetables

Dried black beans are very inexpensive, very nutritious, and easy to store, but take eight hours to soak before cooking. On my first attempt at soaking beans, my four year old discovered the pot on my kitchen counter and turned it into a tar pit for his plastic dinosaurs.

I bought canned beans instead. With any canned vegetables, I checked the labels for excess sodium, and bought reduced sodium options when they were reasonably priced.

But the battle of the budget prevailed and I finally learned how to cook black beans from the bag. Just watch out for the rocks!

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