5 Apple Storage Tricks That Will Keep Your Honeycrisps ‘Crisp’ All Season Long, From a Food Scientist

Forward, you’ll discover all of the apple storage suggestions and tips you may need been sleeping on for a lot of autumns previous. Tamika Sims, PhD, senior director of meals know-how communications on the Worldwide Meals Info Council (IFIC), leads the way in which.

5 apple storage suggestions that can assist maintain your fall haul recent for ages

1. Refrigerate apples for longevity

A few of us have preferences for the temperature of our go-to meals and drinks. That mentioned, you *can* depart your apples in a tabletop fruit basket if you happen to’re not a fan of chilled meals (and it’s A-okay to maintain them out at the least till they’re absolutely ripe). Nevertheless, Dr. Sims cautions that they gained’t final as lengthy at room temperature. This technique presents a shelf lifetime of solely two to 3 weeks, she shares, whereas refrigeration permits your bounty to remain recent for roughly 5 weeks—and even so long as two months. “Particularly, many fridges have a crisper drawer that’s optimum for storing fruit,” she continues. Be sure you put it to make use of.

2. Preserve ethylene at bay

Apples are among the many highest producers of ethylene, an odorless, gaseous ripening agent that many produce gadgets launch. It’s when that gasoline is launched that your favourite fruits and veggies begin to wilt, spot, or in any other case lose their edibility. Apples don’t solely produce ethylene (with varieties like McIntosh producing “prodigious quantities”); they’re additionally extremely delicate to it. Low temperatures assist scale back ethylene sensitivity, therefore why refrigerating permits your apples to final considerably longer than the choice.

You must also retailer your apples away from different high-ethylene producers, which embrace different fridge-friendly produce like pears, peppers, cantaloupe, and kiwi. Earlier than they sit back within the crisper, separate them from better-for-countertop ethylene producers, together with bananas and tomatoes.

You must also retailer your apples away from different high-ethylene producers, which embrace different fridge-friendly produce like pears, peppers, cantaloupe, and kiwi.

3. Be selective if slicing

Some have a tendency to seek out an apple extra pleasurable when it’s sliced versus complete. Should you’re in that camp, intention to chop your apples solely earlier than you intend to take pleasure in them. However in case you might have just a few slices left over that you simply don’t need to waste, bag them up and put them within the fridge ASAP.

Apple slices will inevitably go brown fairly shortly, however Dr. Sims says that this course of doesn’t imply that they’re inedible; they’ll simply be a bit ugly. “The browning of the apple flesh is a pure course of that occurs and is not linked to high quality,” she clarifies. Nonetheless, she presents a useful hack that can assist you get round this in case you’re saving your slices for at the least just a few extra hours or till the following day: squeezing a splash of lemon or lime on them, which delays enzymatic browning.

4. Freeze your apples

In case you might have a ton of apples at dwelling and don’t suppose you’ll be capable to make a dent on them within the weeks forward, you possibly can at all times freeze them. “They have to be washed, peeled, and cored to prep for freezing,” Dr. Sims shares, estimating that they’ll keep recent this manner for as much as eight months.

5. Bake, then refrigerate

Baking up an apple pie and have leftovers? Dr. Sims has some extra insights for you. “Apple pie can keep recent for one to 2 days at room temperature, however the pie needs to be lined or saved in a container,” she shares. Nevertheless, storing your apple pie within the fridge is superior, as it may keep recent for a couple of week’s time. “You can too freeze the pie in a freezer bag or hermetic container to maintain the pie recent for seven to eight months,” she provides.

“[Apples] have to be washed, peeled, and cored to prep for freezing,” Dr. Sims shares, estimating that they’ll keep recent this manner for as much as eight months.

Closing tricks to prep your apples

Now that you simply’re geared up with the perfect methods to retailer apples for peak freshness, Dr. Sims needs to make sure that you prep them properly, too. In fact, you’ll want to wash them.

“Apples, together with different vegatables and fruits, simply have to be rinsed with clear operating water,” says Dr. Sims. “Accessing clear water is step one in safely eliminating any contaminants—together with filth and microbes corresponding to Salmonella and Campylobacter, which may trigger foodborne sickness.” Relying on the standard of your faucet water, chances are you’ll select to make use of filtered water to rinse off your apples earlier than drying them with a clear (paper or reusable) towel and having fun with them. Dr. Sims says you can at all times take away broken or bruised areas earlier than digging in, which is paramount to easily tossing the entire fruit. Nevertheless, “Any fruit that’s displaying indicators of mould or spoilage needs to be tossed,” she advises.

Lastly, the meals security professional clarifies one false impression: that it’s safer to scrub fruits with cleaning soap. “Soaps and detergent will be unsafe and expose you to chemical substances that aren’t meant to be ingested,” she cautions.