Tips

How to wash fruits and vegetables

Step 1

Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water. (You should always wash your hands before handling food…but you knew that, right?)

Step 2

Under cool running water, rub the fruits and veggies briskly with your clean hands to remove dirt and germs.

Firm produce (like potatoes) or anything with a tough outer rind (like melons) can also be cleaned with a vegetable brush.

Leafy vegetables and herbs can be submerged in cool water and gently swished around to loosen dirt.

Step 3

Dry the produce with a clean towel or paper towel.If you have a salad spinner you can rinse and spin the greens until nice and dry.

If you’re storing the clean produce, keep it separate from raw meat or poultry to reduce the risk of cross-contamination.

That’s it! Easy!

While no cleaning method will completely remove germs, a rinse in clean water has been shown to be effective at reducing the number of those surface germs, as well as dirt, bugs and pesticides.

Speaking of pesticides-

If you are not using organic produce and are worried about pesticides and residues on your fruit and veggies, there is another step you can add.

Get out a large bowl and fill with cold water
Add 1 tablespoon of baking soda and mix to dissolve it.

Add your fruits or veggies and let soak 15 minutes.

Then rinse off with cool water and dry.

A few more tips for washing produce:

Now you know how to safely wash your produce, but not all fruits and veggies are the same. Here’s how to treat them right:

Wash delicate berries and grapes right before you want to eat them to keep them from growing mold Wipe mushrooms with a damp paper towel right before cooking to remove dirt (as opposed to letting them get soggy)

Remove the outermost leaves from heads of cabbage and lettuce before  ashing Don’t use soap 🙂