Food storage advice can be a complete game-changer not just for bananas and potatoes, but also for maintaining your onions’ freshness for longer periods. Onions, a kitchen essential across UK households, are frequently tucked away in the fridge alongside other vegetables, but this actually isn’t their ideal environment, reports the Express.
Should you discover your onions beginning to sprout, becoming soft, or developing mould, the likelihood is they’re being stored improperly. YouTube’s Jerry James Stone has disclosed his top recommendation for maintaining onions in peak condition “without them rotting or going mushy”, revealing his expertise in one of his videos. He explained: “I’m going to talk to you about how you properly store onions – if you do it correctly, you can actually store them for up to six months.
“Onions hate being in the fridge, that’s the first thing – never put them in the fridge. If you do, they actually rot and go mushy.”
Jerry stressed that chilled and damp refrigerator conditions are absolutely unsuitable for whole onions as they require completely different circumstances. Considering their tendency to absorb moisture, placing them in a refrigerator could render onions soggy and vulnerable to deteriorating more quickly, though this rule doesn’t apply to peeled or pre-chopped onions.
“The other thing about onions, is they prefer to be in a dry place, that’s cool, and has good ventilation,” Jerry added.
“Avoid storing them in a cramped drawer; instead aim for a pantry where there’s plenty of air movement. That’s [ventilation] super crucial as they emit quite a bit of moisture.
“One thing you definitely don’t want to do is store onions anywhere next to potatoes. Because of the moisture and ethylene gas onions put out, they cause potatoes to sprout.
“The food you can store onions next to is garlic – they prefer the same environment.”
When keeping onions bought from a supermarket in a plastic bag, it’s advisable to take them out of the bag before storing them. The plastic can trap dampness, resulting in mould development.
To maintain onions’ freshness, they require ventilation, so think about keeping them in a net or mesh bag, which allows improved air circulation and helps control moisture levels.
For brief storage, when you intend to use the onions within a day or two, putting them in a bowl on the kitchen worktop or in a cupboard is adequate.
Nevertheless, for extended storage, onions should be kept in a cool, dry, dark space, away from direct light, such as a cellar or garage.