Don’t you hate it when you go grocery shopping and it’s time to put away all the new stuff and you have to clean out the fridge? I know I cringe every time I have to throw away old produce because its gone bad. That’s the same as throwing away money! Well, here are some great tips on how to store your produce properly to get the longest shelf life possible out of fresh produce thanks to our friends at E-how.com.
How to store apples:
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- Apples
- Plastic Bags
- Plastic bags
1.
o 1
Avoid washing apples before storing them.
o 2
Remove any spoiled apples, as they will ruin the rest.
o 3
Put apples in a plastic bag in the coldest part of the refrigerator, preferably the crisper, or store them in a cool place.
o 4
Store them no longer than six weeks.
How to store Artichokes:
· 1
Avoid rinsing or cutting artichokes before storing.
· 2
Put artichokes into a plastic bag.
· 3
Sprinkle some water over them and seal the bag.
· 4
Store no longer than three to five days.
How to store asparagus:
· 1
Wet a paper towel and wrap around bottom of asparagus stalks.
· 2
Place in plastic bag.
· 3
Put in coldest part of refrigerator, preferably the crisper.
· 4
Store for no more than 2-4 days.
How to store beans:
· 1
Prepare storage containers. Make sure all inner surfaces are clean and dry. If you are using canning jars or foil pouches, place one oxygen absorbing packet into each container. If using plastic buckets, place one ounce of dry ice per gallon capacity in the bottom of the bucket.
· 2
Fill containers with beans. Fill foil pouches to 80% of volume. Fill jars to 95% volume. Fill buckets to within one inch of the top (on top of the dry ice).
· 3
Seal containers. For foil pouches, use an impulse heat sealer. Make sure the seal is tight. A second seal can be applied if desired. For jars, make sure the gasket on the lid is in good condition. Close the jar tightly. For plastic buckets, place the lid on top but do not completely close it until the dry ice has dissipated (sublimed). When the bottom of the bucket begins to feel warmer, place the lid on tightly. If it begins to bulge after a few minutes, open slightly to release the pressure.
· 4
Store containers. All food storage should be placed in a cool, dark and dry location, preferably off the floor and away from rodents. Rubbermaid or similar totes are excellent for storing foil pouches.
How to store Beets:
· 1
Pick up to 1/3 of the foliage from a beet plant at any time to use as cooked greens.
· 2
Harvest both roots and green tops when they're young and tender for best flavor.
· 3
Pull or dig the roots when they reach the desired size for cooking or canning; this varies with the variety of beet and the spacing in the row (the seed packet or catalog write-up will tell you the size range of your variety). Test the size by feeling the tops of the roots with your fingers.
· 4
Store unwashed beet roots in plastic bags in your refrigerator's crisper section for up to three weeks; to increase storage life, remove the greens but leave at least an inch of stem.
· 5
Store beet greens the same way and use them as soon as possible; they'll last only a few days.
· 6
Keep unwashed beet roots long-term by covering them with sand or sawdust and storing in a moist, cool spot (35 to 40 degrees F
How to store broccoli:
· 1
To keep broccoli at its freshest stage, store it for 3 to 5 days in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.
· 2
Broccoli can also be stored by freezing it. Peel the leaves from the stalk. Blanch the broccoli in steam for 5 minutes. Cool, and then place the broccoli in a sealed plastic bag. Broccoli can be stored in the freezer for up to 10 months.
· 3
Cooked broccoli does not store well, as it will break apart when reheated. If you want to store cooked broccoli, steam it until it is just tender and store in a plastic bag for 2 to 3 days
How to store brussel sprouts:
1.
o 1
Avoid rinsing or cutting Brussels sprouts before storing them.
o 2
Remove wilted or discolored leaves covering sprouts.
o 3
Put individual sprouts in a plastic bag.
o 4
Leave packaged sprouts in their packaging, but check to make sure they're fresh if you haven't already.
o 5
Store in refrigerator no more than 3-5 days.
How to store Carrots:
· 1
Comparison shop to find the best carrot deals.
· 2
Choose carrots that are fresh, ripe, bright orange, and hard. Stay away from carrots that have turned brownish or feel rubbery.
· 3
Shop for enough carrots to last you for about 2 weeks.
how to store cauliflower:
· 1
Choose cauliflower at your local market that is free from brown spots. When you bring it home, leave it in the bag it came in, or store in a perforated bag in the crisper of your refrigerator for up to 5 days. Store it with the stem side down to prevent moisture from collecting in the florets.
· 2
Keep cauliflower white while cooking by adding a tablespoon of milk or lemon juice to the cooking water. This is especially necessary if you have alkaline water. In addition, don't cook your cauliflower in an aluminum or iron pot; the chemical makeup of cauliflower will react with the metal and turn the vegetable yellow or to a blue-green color.
· 3
Protect cauliflower from brown spots in your home garden by tying the leaves of the plant over the head. This will protect it from the sun's rays and keep the cauliflower nice and white. Because of the consumer's desire for white cauliflower, farmers have to spend more time in the field protecting cauliflower in this way, which is why it's more expensive than broccoli or cabbage.
How to store corn:
· Test your crop by puncturing a kernel or two. If the juice runs milky rather than clear, the corn is ready for picking. (The time from planting will vary depending on the variety of the corn, your climate and this summer's weather, but start checking 18 to 21 days after you see the first silks.)
· 2
Snap each ear from its stalk with a sharp, downward twist. Leave the stalk in place; it may produce another, smaller ear.
· 3
Pick only as much as you plan to eat immediately.
· 4
Rush to the kitchen, quickly remove the husks and plunge the ears into boiling water.
How to store cucumbers:
· 1
Wash the cucumber off. Cucumbers are grown in the ground, and are covered with dirt and chemicals that need to be cleaned off.
· 2
Lay the cucumber on the top shelf. This is the warmest part of the refrigerator and the best place to store cucumbers. You can also place them in a bowl and set in them refrigerator.
Scalp Psoriasis Pictures & More. All the info you need found here.
· 3
Keep cucumbers away from apples, pears or other fruits that have ethylene. This makes the cucumber taste bad.
· 4
Leave the cucumbers in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat them.
How to store lettuce:
· 1
Separate lettuce leaves from head of lettuce. Place in a colander.
· 2
Place the colander of lettuce leaves under cold running water, allowing them to rinse thoroughly.
· 3
Lay lettuce leaves down on paper towels, and leave them there to dry.
· 4
Put lettuce leaves in the large closable plastic bags. Seal the bags and store them in the crisper compartment of your refrigerator.
How to store mushrooms:
· 1
If the mushrooms are prepackaged, leave them in the packaging.
· 2
If the mushrooms are loose, place them in a paper bag and loosely fold the top of the bag over, or place them in a glass container and cover it with a dish towel or moist paper towel. Be sure to allow air circulation.
· 3
Store the mushrooms in the refrigerator, but not in the crisper.
· 4
Use the mushrooms within a few days, or within a week if they are packaged and unopened.
How to store onions:
· 1
Purchase your choice of whole, dry fresh onions at the market. Remove any shoots or dry, flaking skin and loose matter.
· 2
Take a washed pair of used or new pantyhose and place the onions into the feet.
· 3
Tie a knot in the pantyhose above each whole onion. Repeat this process until both legs are full or you have inserted all the onions.
· 4
Hang the pantyhose in a cool, dry and dark place, such as a pantry, closet or cellar. When you need an onion, simply cut the hose right below the end knot.
How to store peas:
· 1
Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat. While waiting, shell the peas and discard the pods. Skip hulling the peas if they are an edible pod type such as snow peas or sugar snap peas.
· 2
Transfer the peas into the boiling water and leave them for 90 seconds.
· 3
Pour the boiling water and peas through a colander to drain the peas and dump the peas into the ice water to stop the cooking process.
· 4
Remove the ice from the ice water and drain the water from the peas through a colander.
· 5
Spread the peas onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Freeze the peas for two hours.
· 6
Transfer the peas to the resealable freezer bags and store them in the freezer for up to nine months
How to store peppers:
· 1
Pick peppers often throughout the growing season, either at their immature green stage, or when they've turned color. The more peppers you pick the more the plant will produce.
· 2
Cut the fruits from the plant using a knife or clippers to avoid damaging the fragile stems.
· 3
Store sweet peppers for up to two weeks in a spot that ranges from 50 to 55 degrees F.
· 4
Dry or pickle hot peppers.
· 5
Harvest peppers for drying when they start to turn red. Simply pull the plants from the ground and hang them upside down in a cool, dry place, or clip off the peppers and string them together to make colorful ristras.
How to store potatoes:
· 1
Avoid rinsing potatoes before storing.
· 2
Place potatoes in a brown paper, burlap or plastic bag with holes in it.
· 3
Store in a cool, dark, dry place. A root cellar, if you have one, is the best storage option.
· 4
Make sure the temperature in the area is about 45 to 50 degrees F. Don't store potatoes in the refrigerator, or they will become too sweet.
· 5
Avoid storing potatoes with onions because, when close together, they produce gases that spoil both.
· 6
Store potatoes no longer than two months if mature. If they are new, store no longer than one week.
· 7
Check on them occasionally and remove those that have become soft or shriveled, as well as those that have sprouted.
How to store radishes:
· 1
Cut the tops off the radish with a sharp, clean knife. Leave 1/2 inch of the stem attached to the top of the bulb.
· 2
Place the radishes in a perforated plastic storage bag. A perforated bag allows air circulation while retaining moisture during storage. Store in an open plastic bag if you don't have perforated bags.
· 3
Store the bagged radishes in the vegetable crisper drawer of the refrigerator. Store the radishes for up to a month in the refrigerator.
· 4
Inspect the radishes once weekly. Use them immediately if they begin to discolor or develop soft spots.
How to store spinach:
· 1
Avoid washing spinach before storing.
· 2
If spinach is already bagged, leave it in packaging.
· 3
If spinach is loose, place it in a plastic bag.
· 4
Store in the refrigerator crisper.
· 5
Keep for no more than 3-4 days.
How to store tomatoes:
· 1
Determine whether tomatoes are fully ripe. A ripe tomato is dark red or orange, is slightly soft, has a uniform skin color and smells like a tomato.
· 2
Put unripe tomatoes in a brown paper bag and leave them at room temperature until they ripen, usually in a day or two.
· 3
Store ripe tomatoes in a cool place - around 55 degrees F. Stored this way, they should keep for five days. Avoid refrigerating tomatoes.
· 4
Store cut tomatoes in the refrigerator and use as soon as possible.
How to store yams:
· 1
Put water into your large pot, leaving enough room for all of the yams you want to store. Put the pot on the stove and turn the heat to high.
· 2
Rinse your yams thoroughly under cool running water until you have removed all of the dirt and debris.
· 3
Peel your yams with a vegetable peeler.
· 4
Put your yams into the pot of water once the water has started boiling. Boil the yams until they are tender. Test the tenderness by stabbing them gently with a fork.
· 5
Slice or cube your boiled yams into your preferred size. Do this with a sharp knife to avoid accidentally crumbling the yams instead of cutting them.
· 6
Place the yams into resealable freezer bags. Press out as much air as possible from each bag as you seal it. Put the bags in your freezer, where you may store them for up to a year.
