Happy Friday! I have a great quick tip for you today, to help you care for fresh berries, and keep them longer. Have you ever bought fresh berries at the store, brought them home and put them right in the fridge, only to go to eat them the next day and they already have mold growing on them? So disheartening, but today, I’ve got the solution to caring for and keeping fresh berries, fresh.
Berries are prone to growing mold and rotting quickly. To keep mold at bay, rinse berries in a diluted vinegar solution of 1 part vinegar, 2 parts water. The pH of the vinegar will do the job of keeping mold off and kills that unwanted bacteria that grows on them.
Here’s how to clean fresh berries: In a medium size bowl, combine vinegar and water (I suggest 1 cup of vinegar, and 2 cups of water). Carefully place the berries in a colander and give them a good dunk in the vinegar / water bath. Let the berries drain in the colander. Dry them carefully and store them in a paper towel-lined airtight container. If you are buying the berries from the grocery store, you can use the container they came in, just make sure you line it with paper towels before putting the fruit back in.
I use a salad spinner for my berries. I place them in the spinner, and pull the colander part out and dunk that into the bath. Then I place it back in the spinner and carefully, very carefully, spin them to get the excess water off. I pour the excess water out, towel dry the container, line it with paper towels and then place the colander with the berries back in. I cover the spinner and place it in the fridge.
Don’t let one bad berry spoil the bunch. Enjoy them longer by following this quick tip! Happy eating!