When purchasing your Christmas Day dinner ingredients, several steps must be taken so that they remain fresh until December 25.
With the big day just weeks away, experts have cautioned that cooks should be mindful of their placement or risk spoiling portions of your Christmas meal.
As per BBC Good Food, there are five items you should never place carrots next to.
According to the Beeb’s food media brand: “Whether you’re storing carrots in the fridge, cupboard or pantry, keep them away from ethylene gas-producing fruits and vegetables, such as apples, avocados, bananas, pepper and tomatoes, which accelerate ripening and fermentation.”
To maintain your vegetables’ freshness for the longest possible, place them in a sealed container with a shallow layer of water at the bottom. Following this method, the carrots remain crisp, as this variety of root vegetable naturally absorbs moisture.
Storing in the fridge with this method can help them “last up to three months.”
Home-grown
If you’ve bought them yourself rather than buying them from a retailer, store them in conditions similar to their growing environment. The specialists recommend placing them in well-drained soil until you’re ready to prepare them. You can shield them from frost using a thick layer of straw or bracken.
You could also “make up a big box of horticultural sand mixed with wood chipping, or fill with soil and layer in the carrots, making sure they’re completely covered.”
Plastic bags
Remember to remove the carrots from any plastic packaging when you get home.
Experts advise that these thin plastic bags are merely for transporting your groceries home. They emphasise that these bags are not suitable for storage as they can “trap excess moisture, leading carrots to degrade and rot”.
Dirty carrots are good
Don’t rush to wash them as “traces of dirt on unwashed carrots act as an extra barrier, protecting them from dehydration.” They further explain: “As carrots’ feathery greens draw water away from the root, it’s best to cut them from the crown before storing.”
Peeled carrots
If you’ve peeled your carrots, ensure you wrap them in a damp, clean kitchen towel and store them in the fridge. Alternatively, you can place the peeled carrots in a sealed container with a shallow layer of water at the bottom and keep them in the refrigerator.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
