Storing Produce for Maximum Life & Flavor

Whether they come from your garden, a CSA, or one of the many local farmers’ markets, fresh fruits and vegetables are one of the greatest pleasures of summer. What’s not so pleasurable is having to throw away overripe or moldy produce.

Since fruits and veggies do not come with labels featuring storage tips, we’re sharing a few here (graphic below) to help you safely extend the life and flavor of whatever goodness you’ve brought home.

If you like to keep pre-sliced fruits and vegetables on hand for snacking, bear in mind that their storage requirements in that form are a bit different. For the longest possible life—about 5 days—refrigerate sliced produce in an airtight container of zip-style bags. When possible, avoid leaving sliced produce out at room temperature for more than two hours. 

In instances where you can’t eat vegetables or fruit right away, consider freezing them. Most vegetables need to be blanched (dropped in boiling water for 30-60 seconds then immediately dunked into an ice bath to stop the cooking process). Once cooled, store in air-tight freezer containers or bags.

Note, freezing is not recommended for certain vegetables including eggplant, lettuce, leafy greens, potatoes (unless mashed), radishes, and sweet potatoes.

Fruit does not need to be blanched prior to freezing. To ready for freezing, simply prepare the fruit so it’s ready to eat—meaning peel, slice, or pit it. If you’re freezing light-colored fruit, like apples, pears, apricots, or peaches, you may want to use an ascorbic acid dip to prevent browning of the fruit’s flesh. Ascorbic acid dips are available at most grocery stores, or you can make your own.

Laura LaCroix is the Executive Chef at Southwestern Vermont Health Care.