Buying fresh produce and foods from the grocery store is one challenge, but keeping it fresh is a whole other issue. We have all had unpleasant experiences in the past with expired foods or fruits and veggies simply gone bad, so how can we stop wasting food?
Pillow talk
Don’t throw away an old pillowcase – it makes an excellent lettuce bag to keep leafy greens fresh and crisp in the fridge. Wash and dry them thoroughly, then hang the pillowcase in your fridge.
Leftover flesh
As a guideline, cover and refrigerate leaftover fish and meat within two hours of serving. Fish should be eaten within two days, and meat within three, after being taken off the bone.
A bunch of broccoli
Broccoli will keep for a couple of weeks if you store it like a bouquet of flowers in the fridge – cut about an inch off the stem and submerge the stem in a bowl or tub of water. Change the water every couple of days and if the base of the stem seems a little slimy, snip the ends off. Broccoli can also be kept in a plastic bag.
Tofu Tips
Once you have opened a package of tofu, you should store the unused portion in a container of water, with a tight-fitting lid. Tofu should be used within three days from when you first open the package and the water should be changed daily.
The yolk’s on me
If you have a recipe that uses egg whites, you can refrigerate the yolks for later use by storing them, unbroken, in a small bowl, covered with cold water for up to two days.
The other half
If you’ve used half an aubergine (eggplant) and want to keep the other half fresh, put it in a sealed plastic bag in the fridge and rube the cut side with lemon juice to stop it going brown. Make sure it’s kept airtight and it should stay fresh for a couple of days.
Keep milk cool
Full milk will stay fresh for 24 days if kept cold but it is very sensitive to temperature and goes off quickly. You will reduce its shelf life drastically by leaving it out for just two hours, so get into the habit of putting your milk back in the fridge as soon as you’ve finished with it.
Enhance tomato flavour
To bring out the most flavour in tomatoes, store them in a basket on your work surface as chilling them below 550C (1300F) can harm the flavour. They don’t keep as long out of the fridge, so if you’re going to do this it’s best to buy them no more than one or two days before use.
Mellow yellow
For unripe fruit you want to soften up in a hurry, leave at room temperature in a bowl with a couple of ripen quicker. Conversely, if you want fruit to ripen slowly keep you bananas in a separate bowl.
Pay attention, honey
If honey become scrystalized in the jar, it doesn’t mean it’s gone off – it just needs a little attention. Just warm the jar up gently in a microwave (be careful of metallic labels and lids) or put in a pan of hot water for a few minutes. A quick stir and it will be as good as new.
Keep flavour in paper
To get the most out of your mushrooms and aubergines, store them in paper bags in the fridge and only wash or wipe them just before us, which will keep them drier for longer and help them retain more flavour.
Foil your celery
To keep your celery fresh and crisp in the fridge for weeks, wrap it completely in aluminium foil to keep the moisture in.
Bag a ripe one
To speed up the process of ripening tomatoes, keep them in a brown paper bag or closed container to trap the ethylene gas that helps them ripen. Adding an ethylene-emitting apple or pear can also help.
Upside down it
Sour cream will keep longer in your fridge if you store the container upside down, which reduces the amount of oxidizing air that can find its way into the package. Be careful when you open it, though !
Not too ripe
Apples are one of the few fruits which are best eaten slightly underripe, when they are still crunchy. If you keep your apples in the fridge, the cold air will slow down the ripening process but not stop it completely. It’s best to buy just a few at a time to maximize your eating pleasure!
Pick paper
Try to avoid food packaged in plastic as much as possible if the food is absorbent, such as meats and cheeses, which could take up toxins from the plastic. Choose paper packages instead, or buy fresh and remove packaging when you get home.
Grape full
Store your grapes in the coldest part of the fridge in a plastic bag. Make sure you wash them well before you serve them to avoid pesticide residues and other toxins, but don’t wash them before you refrigerate as this can cause them to rot.
Remove mould
While not a major health threat, mould can make food unappetizing. Don’t eat the mould or food that has come into contact with it. Hard cheeses, salami and firm fruits and vegetables can be saved form mould if you cut out them mould and also a large area around it, where there might be growth beneath the surface of the food.
Wash and serve
Don’t prepare your strawberries and raspberries too early if you want them to stay fresh – you can hull or slice them earlier, but only wash them just before you serve, then pat dry with kitchen towel to help them keep their fresh texture.
Paper mushrooms
When you bring fresh mushrooms home from shopping, remove them from any plastic wrapping and put them into a paper bag. Fold the top closed and the mushrooms will last a week.
Avoid the plastic fantastic
Don’t keep meat in plastic in your fridge unless you’re going to eat it the same day. Instead, put it on a plate covered with kitchen roll or a tea towel so the meat can breathe but is protected.
Bleach with lemons
Lemon juice is a great way to stop pre-sliced fruit turning brown and unappetizing, and it will give it a fruitier, more intense taste too. Use it on apples, pears and bananas.
Don’t cover strawberries
The moisture content of fresh strawberries is high, so store uncovered or loosely covered – covering the berries up can cause them to rot, even when refrigerated.
Leave seeds attached
When using only part of a red, green or yellow (bell) pepper, cut it from the bottom or the sides, leaving the seeds attached, and it will remain moist for longer. You can put the rest in a resealable plastic bag and use it 3-4 days later.
Fish for safety
Seafood is responsible for a lot of food poisoning, but it’s perfectly safe and very healthy if treated correctly. If you can’t use it immediately, remove it from its original wrapping and rinse in cold water. Wrap loosely in plastic wrap, store in the coldest part of the refrigerator, and use within 2 days. Store ready-to-eat fish such as smoked mackerel separately from raw fish.
Food poisoning
Although you might be tempted to keep food in your fridge and cupboards for a long time, there are certain foods which you should never keep more than a few days – most importantly fresh or thawed meat and fish, and cooked rice.
A quick refresh
If you lettuce is looking a little droopy, try a restaurant trick by refreshing it before you serve it. Fill a bowl with ice cubes and water and plunge the lettuce into it to give it back a bit of its lost crispness.
Keep lettuce dry
To keep lettuce fresher longer wrap a dry paper towel around the root end of the lettuce head ad store in a freezer bag or in a sealed plastic container in your fridge. The paper towel will absorb the excess water.
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