We love the fact that Organic produce is free of fungicides and preservatives. Who wants to be eating that stuff??
The only downside is that organic produce can and will mature and expire faster that the conventional counterpart. That’s why it’s extra important to take a few moments to make sure you’re storing your fruits and veggies correctly.
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You may also want to invest in products like The Blu Apple or Green Bags which can extend the life of your produce by absorbing the Ethlyene (ripening gas) that the produce naturally emits as it matures. By removing that gas from your crisper drawer, your produce wont ripen as quickly.
There are also a few basic principles to always keep in mind
- Hydration, or rather, dehydration– the number 1 culprit for making veggies
unusable is that they become dehydrated. You can avoid this by keeping them in a plastic bag or leafy greens and herbs can actually go into a glass of water. You can even store carrots in water - Leafs will suck moisture from roots. Root Veggies should have their leafy green tops removed before storing. Roots and tops should be stored separately. With carrots you can even put them into a dish of water to keep them crisp for weeks! Just change out the water after a few days. You can also extend their life greatly (beets too!) by keeping the roots in a plastic bag.
- Try to avoid stacking. If your produce bowl or drawer is full to the brim, it’s likely that the weight from the top fruits is bearing down on the bottom layer causing bruising and preventing the greens from breathing. A head of lettuce that is not smashed in any way will last twice as long as one that is compressed under the weight
of another item. - Organic Fruit has a higher sugar content and will ripen more quickly. For this reason, I like to leave out on the counter only what NEEDS to ripen, or fruit that I know will get eaten within 2-3 days. Anything I’d like to keep around longer than that goes in the fridge. If you love juicy fruit at room temperature like me, just pull it out of the fridge a day or two beforehand. That way your delicious produce bundle will last you the whole week instead of just a few days. Once you get in to the rhythm of replenishing your countertop fruit bowl every couple of days it becomes an easy habit.
