Cleaning fruits and vegetables

How to clean fruits and vegetables

According to the Food and Drug Administration, produce can become contaminated by various ways; the soil it’s grown in, water, animals, and even by poor hygiene from the workers. If that isn’t worrisome enough, it can become contaminated by the many handlers it takes to get from the farm to your kitchen. You can inadvertently compromise your produce by incorrect storage or improper food handling. There have been several large outbreaks of foodborne illness caused by contaminated fruits and vegetables. There are a few steps the FDA suggests to lower your risk of illness.

1. Wash your hands for 20 seconds with warm water and soap before and after preparing fresh produce.

2. If damage or bruising occurs before eating or handling, cut away the damaged or bruised area before preparing or eating.

3. Rinse produce BEFORE you peel it, so dirt and bacteria aren’t transferred from the knife onto the fruit or vegetable.

4. Gently rub produce while holding under plain running water. There’s no need to use soap or a produce wash.

5. Use a clean vegetable brush to scrub firm produce, such as melons and cucumbers.

6. Dry produce with a clean cloth or paper towel to further reduce bacteria that may be present.

7. Remove the outermost leaves of a head of lettuce or cabbage.

8. Store perishable produce in the refrigerator at or below 40 degrees.

If you want to be extra cautious and to be confident you are removing pesticide residue on your produce the best method is soaking them in a mild solution of baking soda and water. A study from the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry  found that a mixture of one ounce of baking soda with 100 ounces of water and soaking produce for 12-15 minutes. Here is a quick and easy way to wash your produce using baking soda.

Leafy greens

1. Fill a salad spinner with greens, then fill with water.

2. Add a teaspoon of baking soda and mix well.

3. Soak your greens for a minute, swish, dump, then rinse, and spin dry.

4. Alternately, add the greens, water, and baking soda to a bowl, soak for a minute, drain in a strainer, rinse, then pat the leaves dry with a lint-free towel or paper towels.

Mushrooms

1. Gently scrub mushrooms using a mushroom brush and rinse them quickly under running water.

2. Blot them dry with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels.

Other vegetables

1. Fill a large bowl with water.

2. Add 1 teaspoon of baking soda.

3. Add the veggies.

4. Soak for a minute or two.

5. Scrub with a brush.

6. Rinse off the vegetables.

Fruits

For fruit such as apples, nectarines, and cherries wash in the baking soda and water like the vegetables. Berries should only be washed just before eating. Washing berries ahead of time increases moisture and speeds up spoilage, microflora, and mold.  To wash berries rinse under cold water in a strainer and pat dry with a clean towel or paper towels.