We know that eating lots of fresh fruits and
vegetables is one of the best things we can
do for our health.
But are we taking that next step to clean
them well so that they’re good for us, our
health and our wallet?
We’ve all been there!
Our produce just ends up looking as sad as
we do.
Properly washed and stored produce can stay
fresher longer and help prevent weird science
experiments growing in our produce bins.
Even if we're fortunate enough to be able
to buy organic produce, they are still exposed
to pesticides and of course they’re grown
in dirt which can have bacteria and fungus.
So what can be done to prevent beautiful food
from going bad?
They say the proof is in the pudding.
One month ago I bought these yellow peppers
from the clearance rack from my local market.
These are usually toward the end of their
life.
I got them home and gave them my usual treatment
and proceeded to eat one because peppers are
my favorite.
I really should have left one untreated as
a control for a true scientific experiment.
One month later, this is the only rot
spot of all of them.
The other two have no rot at all and all three
are still edible if I cut away the bad part
and throw them in a stir fry.
To me, this is proof that these solutions work.
The remaining vegetables that went south were
not treated at all because I did not have
time.
The first homemade cleaner is the produce soak.
I start by filling a large bowl with 2 quarts
or 8 cups of water.
This is a 4 quart bowl so I just fill it half
way.
Then I add 1 heaping tablespoon of baking
soda and mix gently to dissolve.
Now I’ve made my own produce soak to help
remove dirt and pesiticides from my produce.
Let’s look at one study from 2017 in the
Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
They compared the effectiveness of two cleaning
solutions - one of bleach and the other of
baking soda.
It states that surface pesticide residues
were most effectively removed by baking soda.
Using a 10 mg to 1 mL baking soda solution
it took 12 to 15 minutes to completely remove
surface residues.
In the presence of baking soda the bad stuff
can degrade which assists the physical removal
force of washing.
The second cleaner is an all purpose produce
spray made with
white distilled vinegar which we buy in bulk from Costco.
I reuse the glass 32 ounce glass ACV bottles from
Costco, add one cup or 8 ounces of vinegar
to it, then fill the rest with filtered water to result in a one part vinegar, three part water solution.
This produce spray is meant to disinfect the food
after they have gone through a soak.
It’s also a safe all purpose cleaner to
use around all foods.
Just be sure to keep it away from granite
and wipe up spills quickly.
Vinegar and granite do not mix.
So once I get the produce home, I start by
giving them all a good long 15 minute soak in the baking
soda solution.
I like to use my bowl but if you want to go
faster you can fill a whole sink or large
bucket of water and do the same just by keeping
a similar ratio of 10 grams of baking soda
to 1 liter of water.
For me, I change out the solution every 3-4 soakings.
For this round I made two soaking solutions.
I start with the leafiest first.
Today that means this red leaf lettuce.
I make sure to separate the leaves so it gets
into all the nooks and crannies.
Im trying to make sure all leaves come in
good contact with the solution.
I place the leaves in my salad spinner from
ikea, give it a good rinse under the tap and
spin it dry.
Excess moisture is another enemy here so
if you don’t have a spinner, blot your produce
with an absorbent towel.
To store these, I lay the leaves on a towel
also from ikea and roll it up gently and these
leaves are ready to be used throughout the
week.
For the parsley or any leafy herbs I give
them the same treatment but I store it in
a glass of water on the counter overnight
until the leaves dry completely then I cover
it with a bag over the top.
Grapes are the same after soaking and rinsing
I give them a good spin dry and I do my best
to ensure that they stay on the stem.
I find that they keep fresher for longer this
way.  I wrap in a cotton towel to wick
away moisture.
Reusing some of these old containers from
previous produce helps organize my bins a
little better.
Peaches tend to have little bugs that creep
me out.
But the soak takes care of them.
I make sure to remove any stickers, stems
and little bugs
Pears tend to get moldy on the bottoms and
this really kills all the spores to prevent
that from happening.
Cucumbers, Carrots, limes - these all get
the produce soak, rinse, produce spray which
I let sit for a few minutes and then another
rinse.
And for these items that don’t fit in the
spinner I dry with a clean towel.
Broccoli I soak the crown and this will release
any dirt or bugs the buds are hiding.
To store I use little glass yogurt containers
filled with water and stand them up in the
vegetable bin.
Green onions I soak last because they smell
and store on the counter in a glass jar filled with water just like a pretty plant.
For onion, garlic, ginger, zucchini, cabbage and potatoes
I wash them all in a similar way but only when I'm ready to use them..
Otherwise, I store them at room temperature in their whole form
For larger items like Bananas and watermelon,
I always spray with the vinegar right when
I get home.
I completely wet all sides of it and leave
it in the sink so the vinegar can dry completely
on the skin.
This prevents those little flys from hatching
from the bananas.
For onion, garlic, ginger, zucchini, cabbage
and potatoes I wash in a similar way only
when I’m ready to use them.
Otherwise I keep them stored at room temperature
in their whole form.
And definitely for melons I give them a good
wash before cutting because the lunges blade
draws through the outer skin of the melon,
so we definitely want to make sure it's
clean so we can eat that beautiful flesh.
And if a science experiment does grow in your
refrigerator like mine, be sure to clean the
bins out with some soap and that vinegar spray.
Being stored in clean containers will also
help your produce stay fresh for longer.
This produce will last us about a week and
we will go through it.
I’ve learned to buy what we’ll use in
a reasonable amount of time.
I’ve also been learning to buy living foods
as possible.
Herbs and lettuce are excellent examples.
These will last for months with proper care.
Another thing I like to do is
stock up on frozen veggies when I can because
they’re so quick and easy and still very
nutritious.
They’re great to add to give more nutrition
to basic quick meals when life gets busy.
Combined with simple pantry ingredients, these longer lasting
fruits and veggies are sure to give us healthy meals throughout the week.
This last round rotted because we had too
much.
I went to the store and my in-laws visited
unexpectedly and gifted us a box vegetables
from their garden.
It was way more than I had the time to clean,
properly store and prepare.
Which ended up working out in my favor!
This video would not have been possible without
that.
So I hope this helps you to clean your produce better
and keep them fresher for longer.
Let me know down in the comments how you
clean and eat your fresh fruits and veggies?
Thanks for watching and I wish you happy eating!
I'll see you next time!
And now, YouTube, with a fridge full of fresh and clean produce
and a slightly emptier wallet,
I mock a very popular show and say,
"Allez Cuisine!"
