Since my boyfriend and I are constantly debating how food should be stored, I figure there are plenty of others out there with the same issue. And in researching for this post, I actually discovered I was wrong about tomatoes. So let's start there.
Tomatoes - should be stored on the counter. Storing in the fridge changes their texture making them mealy, and dulls the flavor.
Mushrooms - store in a brown paper or some sort of porous bag. Fresh mushrooms should never be frozen. They typically keep for a week.
Onions - should be stored in a dark, cool spot in the pantry. Peeled or sliced onions can be kept up to 7-10 days in the fridge. Cooked onions can be kept in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Eggs - store eggs on a lower shelf and not in the door of the fridge. To test if the egg is fresh, place egg in a glass of water. If it sinks, it's fresh, if it floats to the top it has too much gas in it. Cooked eggs last 3-4 days in the fridge.
Avocados - store on your counter, away from direct heat and sunlight if you want them to not ripen too quickly. If you only use half the avocado, keep the seed in the other half, brush with a little lemon or lime juice and store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Meat - should be stored on a lower shelf on a plate in the fridge. This prevents cross contamination or spoiling other food with the meat juices.
Bread - my boyfriend insists on storing his sourdough bread in the fridge and I know lots of other people that do this. Well if you want your bread to dry out faster then happy refrigerating!
Bananas - best stored on some type of fruit hanger, away from other fruit and vegetables. Really ripe bananas can be frozen until ready to use. Wrap the top of the bananas with plastic to slow down ripening.
Milk - typically people store milk in the door of the fridge, but it's better to store on a shelf. The constant opening and closing of a fridge shortens the life of milk.
Cheese - cover with wax paper and store in an airtight container in the fridge
Lettuce - for a full head of lettuce wrap in damp paper towel and place in a plastic bag. For lettuce leaves, shake off excess moisture, place in a plastic bag and leave a corner slightly open for airflow or store in a lettuce container.
Strawberries - how quickly these go bad drives me nuts. So there are 2 helpful things you can do. 1. If a strawberry in the container is going bad remove it as quickly as possible. 2. In a bowl, place 1/2 cup of vinegar and 2 1/2 cups of water and soak your strawberries for a few minutes. This removes the mold spores and bacteria - and no they won't take like vinegar.
Potatoes - store in a cool, dry place in the pantry.
Ketchup and Mustard - save fridge space and safely store them in a cool spot in the pantry.
Herbs - store in a vase with water like you do flowers will make them last much longer.
Citrus Fruits - best stored in the fridge if you have the space. Do not store in a plastic bag or airtight container as this will make them go moldy faster.
Let me know if you have any clever hacks....................
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