Experts estimate that a typical household throws away between 25 and 30 percent of the food they buy. Prime among these are fresh veggies. In order to avoid throwing away or composting one-fourth of your shopping money, read on for some easy tips on preserving fresh veggies.
The best ways to preserve the flavor of seasonal favorites are detailed here. Typically, the shelf life of organically grown food cultivated close to home is less than that of food grown using other methods.
You may put away produce without washing it if it's still fresh. Vegetables spoil more rapidly when exposed to moisture. The best time to prepare veggies is right before you want to eat them, so do so by thoroughly washing them under running water just before you cook them. Sporadically rotting vegetables soften and wilt. Prevent waste by putting them in the freezer or the fridge immediately.
Store asparagus for up to five days in the fridge by wrapping the base of a bunch in moist paper or cloth towels and placing them in a plastic bag with holes (or leaving them open). Alternatively, position the spears in a container with an inch of water and cover them closely with plastic.
Separate the greens from the roots when storing beets, turnips, and rutabagas. Leave a 1- to 2-inch piece of the stem and root on the greens you're cutting. Greens should be stored in the refrigerator in a paper towel or cloth bag. Roots should be stored in the vegetable bin or a plastic bag in the fridge without their wrappings. You may keep roots in the fridge for three weeks, while greens will keep for a few days.
You may keep broccoli and cauliflower for up to two weeks in the fridge if you wrap them in a paper towel or a cloth towel and store them in the vegetable bin or a plastic bag.
You can keep cabbages and bok choy for up to two weeks in the refrigerator if you don't wrap the heads, and you can keep them for up to a month if you store them in a plastic bag in the vegetable bin. In order to store ruffled cabbages like Savoy and Nappa, as well as leafy greens like bok choy, it is best to wrap them in a paper or cotton towel. These types of cabbages degrade more rapidly, so you should plan to cook them within a few days.
Roots can be kept for up to two months in the vegetable bin or plastic bags in the fridge. In contrast to immature vegetables, large, mature roots keep for a longer period of time, especially if they are mulched in the garden throughout the winter.
Fennel bulbs may be kept fresh in the refrigerator for up to a week if they are stored in a plastic bag in the vegetable crisper. To keep the fluffy tips from withering, wrap them in a paper or linen towel.
Refrigerate your leeks for up to a week in a plastic bag with holes (or leave it open) or in the vegetable bin.
