Where should I store?

Where should I store?
Keeping food fresher for longer. Tips on food storage.

BANANAS ~ Keep you bananas on the worktop to ripen. Once ripe, they can go in the fridge- the skins will get browner, but the flesh won't be affected. Don't keep bananas with other fruits, unless you want to ripen it. * Bananas give off ethylene, which helps fruit ripen.

POTATOES ~ Remove from the plastic bags and keep them in a cool, dry, dark place. Daylight can make potatoes turn green. Cold temperatures encourage the conversion of starch into sugar, so storing them in the fridge can make potatoes taste sweet. Potatoes absorb strong smells from foods such as onions and garlic, so keep them apart.

MUSHROOMS ~ Keep them in the main compartment of your fridge in a paper bag.  Paper bags are better than plastic ones because they absorb excess moisture from the mushrooms, helping to prevent them becoming slimy.  * Mushrooms absorb strong odours, so keep them seperate from powerful smelling foods.

TOMATOES ~ Keep toms on your worktop, once ripe store in a cool place away from direct sunlight - but not in the fridge. Refriderating tomatoes damages the cells, reducing their flavour. If you want your tomatoes to ripen quicker a trick is to pop them in a paper bag with a banana or an apple, which doubles the ripening process. * Tomatoes produce ethyline and will ripen other fruits if stored together.

FRESH-CUT HERBS ~ Keep them in the salad drawer of your fridge in a sealed plastic bag. The salad drawer is ideal as it isn't as cold as the rest of the fridge - leafy herbs can go black at temps below 3C. For big bunches of herbs with stalks, like basil or parsley, just snip the ends and place upright in a glass filled with an inch of water, cover with a plastic bag and secure with an elastic band. They should keep for a good five days this way.

ASPARAGUS ~ Once picked, asparagus rapidly loses flavour and tenderness, so it really is worth eating it on the day you pick it or buy it. If that isn't possible, store asparagus in the fridge with a damp paper towel wrapped around the bottom of the stalks and you can get away with keeping it for a couple of days.

BERRIES ~ Remove from their cartons and ditch any squashed or moudly berries. Place the berries in a single layer in a shallow dish lined with a paper towel. Cover and refrigerate. * Don't wash the berries until you are ready to use them or they will be mushy!

APRICOTS, NECTARINES & PEACHES ~ Place unripe firm peaches, nectarines &  apricots on the worktop at room temperature and they will ripen within a few days. When ripe refrigerate and eat them within 3 days.

APPLES & PEARS ~ Keep them on the worktop in a fruit bowl, away from direct sunlight. When pears are ripe you can pop them in in the fridge for 2-3 days.  * Remove  bruised apples straight away otherwise they will quickly damage the rest. Apples produce ethylene so can help ripen other friut and vegetables.

AVOCADOS ~Place on the worktop at room temperature to ripen, the pop in the fridge when ripe. * To quickly ripen an avocado, pop in a paper bag with an apple, banana, or some tomatoes. The ethylene from these other fruits will get trapped in the bag and trigger the ripening process.

PINEAPPLES ~ Pineapple can be left at room temperature for one or two days before serving. Pineapples won't ripen anymore once they have been picked. They are very perishable,so you should watch them closely to ensure that they do not spoil. After two days, if you are still not ready to consume the pineapple, you should wrap it in a plastic bag and store it in the fridge where it will keep for a maximum of three to five days.

MANGOS ~ Ripen at room temperature, keep out of direct sunlight, for up to three days. Once ripe, eat immediately or store in the fridge.

KIWI FRUIT ~ Kiwifruits can be left to ripen for a few days to a week at room temperature, keep away from exposure to sunlight or heat. Placing the fruits in a paper bag with an apple, banana or pear will help to speed their ripening process. Ripe kiwifruits can be stored either at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

FIGS ~ Figs are very perishable and should be kept refrigerated. Fresh figs are picked ripe, they do not improve after picking. A fresh fig is soft and has a fragrant, spicy perfume. If it's over-ripe or spoiling, it will smell rotten. Treat fresh figs gently and eat them as soon as possible after buying them.

NUTS ~ Although they may look like a non-perishable food item, nuts can go rancid very quickly because of their fat content. Shelled nuts go off faster than those still in their shells. It's a good idea to store nuts in the fridge or the freezer. It varies really on how long nuts keep, but one rule of thumb is - A month at room temperature...Up to six months in the fridge...Up to one year in the freezer. To check nuts for freshness, just give them a shake - if they rattle, it means the nuts are old and are beginning to dry out. So best to chuck em!

EGGS ~ Eggs should be stored in their boxes in the fridge. The shells are porous, so  eggs can absorb the flavours and aromas of other strong foods, so close the boxes and keep them fairly isolated. They should be eaten by their best before date. * Bring eggs to room temp before using them, for better cooking results.

PRESERVES ~ Most preserves will keep for up to a year - and some will certainly keep for much longer, given the right storage conditions. The traditional advice is to store them in a cool, dry, dark place such as a larder or cellar. Once opened, all preserves are subject to contamination by airborne bacteria and should be consumed within a few weeks. Keep opened jars in the fridge.

OLIVE OIL ~ Storing olive oil so that it remains fresh, retains flavour, and doesn’t become rancid is important. Olive oil should be stored in a cool, dark place away from light and heat. Do not refrigerate. Place your olive oil in a kitchen cabinet away from the heat of the stove.