There’s a range of bizarre advice out there on how to make your veggies last longer, from storing onions in nylon tights to hiding them in the basement. But one expert has revealed why the fridge, a seemingly more logical solution, might actually be the worst place for them.
According to food expert and author of Little House Living, Melissa Alink, the fridge can make onions go off much quicker than expected due to the cold temperatures, which can speed up the conversion of starches to sugars. She warned home cooks this can make them go soft and mushy, and advised against keeping them in the fridge. Melissa explained: “That is because whole raw onions absorb moisture quickly and can turn softer in the fridge.”
Onions aren’t happy either when they get too hot, since warmer temperatures can cause them to sprout.
This is because onions, like most fruits and vegetables, are still alive when we eat them, which means the cells continue to burn oxygen and sugar to make energy.
When root vegetables like onions get cold, they begin converting their stores of starch into sugar to provide energy, but when they get too hot, they can start burning up sugars to grow shoots and produce a new plant.
The expert recommended keeping them in a dark, well-ventilated place like a cupboard or drawer.
Alink said: “Store your onions in a dry [spot] where moisture cannot seep through to keep them from spoiling or rotting. Avoid storing onions in areas such as under the sink or in the basement, where it is humid.”
She also recommended removing them from the plastic bag they are sold in, because they retain a great deal of moisture.
Sprouted onions are not poisonous and the shoots themselves are even edible. Once an onion starts sprouting, the taste will be more bitter since it will have consumed a lot of the sugars.
Iowa State University advises: “Place the cured onions in a mesh bag, old nylon stocking, wire basket, or crate.”