The Best Ways to Store Your Groceries to Ensure Maximum Freshness
With the global pandemic leading to people staying home more, you’ve naturally started buying more fresh groceries and spending more time in the kitchen to whip up different meals that you never had the chance to before.
So imagine your dismay when it’s taco night and the avocados you’ve bought for your guacamole are still rock solid, and the bag of onions you were ready to use have dark spots and have gone mushy!
Your first mistake is probably chucking all of the fresh produce into the refrigerator the moment you got home from the supermarket. But not everything belongs in the fridge even though it may appear to be a magical cold storage cabinet where things can seemingly last forever.
Knowing where and how long to keep your produce can help you maximise both freshness and shelf life, allowing you to get the most out of your food. Here’s a handy guide on the best ways to store some common groceries so that you won’t be left with unripe, stale, or rotting ingredients before your next meal!
Green leafy vegetables
Ensuring you have a constant supply of vegetables in your diet, especially of the green and leafy variety, will provide you with some essential nutrients to help you stay healthy and strong. While there’s nothing wrong with buying a large batch of vegetables on sale, knowing how to store them properly will help you make sure nothing goes to waste.
In general, leafy vegetables such as cabbage, lettuce, and kale should be stored in the refrigerator’s crisper drawer for maximum freshness. In addition, vegetables should never be washed prior to storage, as that will introduce extra unnecessary moisture to the vegetables, causing them to spoil faster. If kept well in the fridge, you can expect vegetables to last around two weeks.
Eggs and dairy
Many of us rely on our trusty refrigerator door space to conveniently store our cartons of milk. After all, that’s what it’s designed for, right? It turns out that the fridge door is not the most ideal place to store your milk, simply because the temperature in that region tends to fluctuate more than other parts of the fridge. This may result in your milk going bad faster than you expect it to.
LIkewise, though many fridges come with egg trays in the fridge doors, they aren’t the best places to keep eggs fresh due to the same reason. Both items should ideally be stored in the back of one of the shelves in the fridge to help prolong their shelf lives.
But how long can they be kept in the fridge? Milk usually has a “use by” date which should be adhered to as this indicates when they will not be suitable for consumption. On the other hand, products with “best before” dates denote the quality and freshness of the item — not necessarily when it has gone bad — so you should do a visual and smell test to determine if it cannot be consumed.
Eggs can last from three to five weeks if stored properly in the fridge.
Fresh meat
Saw a sale at the supermarket for some fresh meat? It may be a great time to save money on these proteins, but how can you make sure they last as long as possible?
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, meats such as beef, lamb, and pork can be safely stored in the fridge for around three to five days. If you want to extend the shelf life of meat, consider cooking it as you’ll be able to store the meat for another three to four days before it’s time to get rid of it.
But what about long-term meat storage? Unless you’re cooking for large groups of people every week, you probably won’t be able to use up all your meat that quickly to maintain freshness. Freezing is a great way to prolong the shelf life of meat, and meat that is packed and stored properly in the freezer can last for roughly nine months while still retaining all its essential nutrients and quality.
Onions
Onions are one of the things that can seemingly last forever. But don’t be fooled — it is a vegetable after all and will eventually go bad after some time.
Whole raw onions should be kept in a cool, dry, and dark place to keep them as fresh as possible. Properly stored onions can last for around two to three months before they start to develop dark spots and go bad.
On the other hand, onions that have been peeled and cut will require refrigeration to maintain freshness. These sliced, diced, and chopped onions will last for around seven to 10 days when packed in an airtight container. Cooked onions will be able to last for up to four days when refrigerated.
Tofu and beancurd
Tofu and beancurd products are great options to have around if you feel like adding some plant-based protein to your meals. But what do you do if you didn’t use all of it and need to keep your tofu for another day?
Unused tofu can be safely stored in the refrigerator for around a week, but there’s a trick to making it look and taste as fresh as the day you bought it. Simply ensure that your tofu is stored in cold water and change the water every two to three days to ensure maximum freshness!
Not planning to use it in the short-term? Tofu can also be safely frozen for up to three months and still be good. Just remember to cut the tofu into chunks and remove all the water before freezing. Defrosting frozen tofu may result in a spongier texture compared to fresh tofu, but it is still safe for consumption.
Noodles
Having some noodles on standby in your pantry is an unsurprising staple in many Asian households. But stocking up on too many packets of noodles can make you lose count and forget which ones need to be cooked first.
The good news is that dry noodles can often be stored for a long time before they’re considered unusable. Most manufacturers will have a “best before” date which you can adhere to, but a general guideline of two years is reasonable for most dry noodle products. All you need to remember is to store them in airtight containers and watch out for signs of degradation, like a change in smell or colour.
Cooked noodles are a different story, only lasting between two and five days in the refrigerator after cooking. If freezing is necessary, expect a storage time of up to two months.
Tomatoes
You may be tempted to keep tomatoes in the fridge the moment you get home, but that may result in unripe or tasteless tomatoes. Like avocados, tomatoes will benefit from being stored at room temperature for awhile before slowing the ripening process in the fridge once you have determined that they’re ready for consumption
But what’s the best way of storing them outside of the fridge? Keep tomatoes in cool, dark, and dry areas, preferably in a paper bag, with the stem facing down. This is done to prevent air and bacteria from entering the tomato, and moisture from escaping. In addition, plastic bags are said to make tomatoes spoil faster.
If your tomatoes have turned extremely red and start to feel a little soft, it’s time to store them in the fridge to slow the ripening. Tomatoes stored at room temperature can be kept for around a week, while those kept in the fridge can be stored for up to two weeks.
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