How many times have you sadly opened the refrigerator, you saw those beautiful strawberries and you whispered between you and you: “I lost my time again …”? Fruits and vegetables, especially the most delicate and difficult to preserve, have the bad habit of rotting even before having looked at the first episode of the new Netflix series on healthy nutrition.
But don’t worry: there is a solution for strawberries. And no, it does not include the expensive miraculous vacuum cleaner seen in night television advertisements or the reminder apps that judge you passively. All you need is something that you almost certainly have at home: sodium bicarbonate. Forget the moldy strawberries and a waning lettuce: this simple culinary makeup will prolong the conservation of fruit and vegetables. And yes, you already have everything you need at home.
This trick will keep your fresh strawberries for weeks (no, you don’t need magic)
Why do fruit and vegetables deteriorate so quickly?
When you come back from the shop with a basket full of fruit and vegetables, you are a real example of healthy lifestyle. Well, at least for a few hours. Then comes a week in which you ordered home delivery three times, on the package you only saw spinach and now in the fridge a small botanical drama awaits you.
The main guilty of this rapid degeneration? Mugs, bacteria and residues of pesticides that accelerate the decomposition of your investments in fruit and vegetables. Yes, even those glittering apples of the “organic” department can be elegantly disguised battlefields of microscopic parasites.
A solution almost too simple to believe it
And here the sodium bicarbonate comes into play. A silent winner for each kitchen furniture. His last mission? How to save blueberries from premature destruction.
How does it work?
You will need:
- 1 large bowl (or a sink if the fruit accumulates as in an Instagram fruit)
- cold water
- from 1 to 2 tablespoons of sodium bicarbonate
Just dip the fruit and vegetables in the solution for 10-15 minutes. Then rinse them well and – be careful! – Make sure to dry. The drops of water can be photogenic in the advertisements of yogurt, but in reality they are the personal trainers of the mold. And it trains quickly.
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What can you wash with this trick?
Almost everything that is not already present in the compote. Strawberries, blueberries, grapes, cucumbers, apples, peppers … pay attention only to the most delicate fruits (read: raspberries, the queens of fruit drama). Don’t soak them too long and do not treat them like dirty potatoes. You don’t want a puree of berries … unless it is a smoothie, of course.
Bonus point? This trick not only extends freshness, but also removes some pesticide residues. Health, sustainability and savings, all in one. If sodium bicarbonate was an influencer, it would already have its own line of products for eco-compatible cleaning and a podcast on awareness.
Conservation after washing: another fundamental step
After washing and dried the fruit and vegetables, keep it in well -ventilated containers or wrap it in a kitchen canvas. Plastic bags that retain humidity? A real sauna for mold. And, as we know, we feel at home in wet and dark places, as in a room in the dormitory of a student in the middle of a period of examination.
Conclusion
From today there will be no more excuses for moldy strawberries and sad broccoli. Sodium bicarbonate, that humble star of your kitchen shelf, now shines as a custodian of freshness. This simple trick will save not only your refrigerator, but also your conscience (and your wallet). Hey, if we can’t eat five portions of fruit a day, at least we don’t let her die in vain.
