10 Ways to Keep Your Food Fresh for Weeks (the Fridge Isn’t Always the Answer)

Food waste is a major problem in our society and it happens mainly because people throw away their food either because they didn’t store it properly or because they follow the expiration dates strictly. It is important to know that while expiration dates are important, most foods can be stored and kept fresh for much longer. That is, of course, if we can follow some simple tricks and tips.

Bright Side collected 10 majorly important tips that will help your wallet and the freshness of your food.

1. Hang your bananas to slow down their ripening.

Everyone can agree that brown bananas are the worst kind of bananas you can end up with. That’s why a smart trick would be to get a hanger or simply hang your bananas from a drawer using a plastic bag, away from other fruit. This way they don’t get too much oxygen, resulting in them staying fresh for longer without bruising too fast.

2. Drizzling lemon juice over your cut bananas will keep them from going brown for a few hours.

Preparing your snacks beforehand might be very time effective, but it can also harm the quality of your food. And sliced bananas go brown only minutes after you cut them, so sprinkling some lemon juice over them is a good idea to get them to keep their color for longer. And because lemon can be very powerful, you can dilute it with some water and drizzle it over your bananas.

3. Keep your cookies fresh and moist by storing them with a slice of bread.

The first step after baking cookies is usually to store them in a container. No matter how airtight the container is, your cookies will get harder and harder as the days go by. A clever trick would be to add a slice of bread to that same container to let your cookies absorb the moisture from it. This way they will maintain their soft texture for much longer and will still have that fresh-out-the-oven feel.

4. Sprinkle some vinegar on cheese to avoid mold.

Most people store cheese either inside containers or wrap it in plastic wrap, with the latter being very harmful since the plastic wrap attracts too much moisture which causes mold. What would be more effective is to add a few drops of vinegar to the cheese to prevent mold from growing. Be careful to not use too much vinegar, as it can ruin the taste of the cheese. But, even if you use vinegar, make sure to tightly wrap your cheese in wax paper and store it in the fridge.

5. Brush your winter squash with some oil and store it.

The first step would be to thoroughly wash your squash and pat it dry with a towel. Whatever moisture stays on the squash could result in mold. After that is done, you can add some oil to a cloth and rub it gently on the squash. The final result should be a squash that is shiny, but not too greasy and slimy.

6. Use your herbs to make herb butter.

If you’ve got too many herbs in your fridge that are about to go bad, you can easily mix them with some butter and create your own herb butter. To make it even more special, you can whip up some fresh double cream and make the butter from scratch. So, breakfast for the entire week is all figured out.

7. Cover your guacamole with plastic wrap, leaving no air.

Avocados are some of the most in demand fruits worldwide and guacamole is the main reason why. One of the negative facts is that leaving your guacamole in the fridge can turn it brown in a matter of hours. The best solution to that would be to cover the guac container with plastic wrap and push it all the way down so there is very little air reaching the avocado paste. This method will keep your guacamole fresh for up to 3 days, with some brown being formed only at the sides of the container.

8. Put your asparagus in a glass of water.

Like most fresh vegetables, asparagus don’t have very much fridge life, since their stems can get very dry. The solution to that problem is to keep them, one bunch at a time, in a glass of water outside the fridge for a few days. Not only will they stay fresh, but they will also start growing, giving you even more produce to cook and enjoy.

9. Rub the ends of cheese with some butter so it doesn’t dry out.

Cheese often dries out pretty fast in the fridge if not stored properly, with large cracks and dried ends being fully visible. By adding some butter at the edges of the piece of cheese, you give it the moisture it needs to stay hydrated and not dry out. Even if it does dry out, you can still fix it by rubbing butter all over the cracks.

10. Store ginger in the freezer.

Ginger is an ingredient that we might not need to use on a daily basis or in large quantities. That’s why freezing it will allow us to keep it fresh for 2 to 9 months, maintaining its quality to a satisfactory level. You can also grate it in advance so you can take one spoonful at a time, saving you some time especially on those busy days when you need to prepare something fast.

Do you know of any smart food storing tricks that you would like to share? Please feel free to leave them down in the comments.