As healthcare awareness continues to spread, we’re learning new things about the foods we eat, the health benefits of these meals, and other things that concern consumer health.
Family healthcare experts and other nutritionists have told us the best way to preserve food according to their kind. For instance, while some foods should be refrigerated, some others should be stored at room temperature.
Let us discover 15 foods healthcare professionals ask us to store at room temperature to get the best health benefits from them.
Tomatoes
While you might want to keep tomatoes in the fridge so they can last long, you’re only setting them up to lose texture and flavor. It’s best to place them on the counter and eat them fast. If you must refrigerate, then cook them first.
Potatoes
The best temperature for potatoes is cool, and not cold like the fridge. When you refrigerate potatoes, it’ll taste weird because the cold will break down the starch while it is still uncooked.
Stone Fruits
You can extend the lifespan of stone fruits like peaches, apricots, plums, and nectarines by a few days when you refrigerate them, but they are best kept in a paper bag and placed on your kitchen shelf.
Onions
Onions are best kept at room temperature and away from sunlight. The fridge is colder than room temperature, so it would spoil a full onion faster. However, if they’ve been cut, wrap them in a plastic bag and toss them in the vegetable drawer of your fridge.
Nuts
There’s no place better suited for nuts than an air-tight container. Although refrigeration can prevent the oils in the nuts from turning sour, it also makes them lose their taste.
Melons
Melons like honeydew, cantaloupes, and watermelons maintain their delicious taste when you store them at room temperatures. Don’t refrigerate them unless you’ve cut them open.
Hot Sauce
Although your refrigerator cannot cause harm to hot sauce, you don’t have to refrigerate it at all because the vinegar in it prevents bacteria growth and keeps it fresh.
Honey
Honey has a long lifespan and could last for years on your table or drawer so there’s no need to refrigerate it. If you do, the honey will harden, and you’d need to heat it in warm water before restoring its consistency.
Garlic
When you refrigerate garlic, it loses its delicious pungent taste. It is best to keep your garlic in a paper bag that leaves room for ventilation and place it at room temperature.
Coffee Beans
Your coffee beans will lose their taste and strength due to condensation that occurs when you refrigerate it. Instead, place them in airtight containers and let them sit on your counter or shelf.
Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread
Your Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread will lose its consistency and harden when you refrigerate it. It would also lose its flavor. Your countertop is the best place to store it. Always ensure that it is tightly shut.
Bread
A vast majority of people place their bread in the fridge to extend its lifespan and slow down mold growth. But while you’re doing this, you’re also drying out the bread. It is best to place it in a pantry or bread drawer. If you must store it long-term, then freeze it and toast it when you need to eat.
Berries
It is best to eat your berries straightaway because refrigerating it will promote mold growth, even though it could extend its lifespan for a few days.
Avocados
If your avocado has reached perfect ripeness, refrigeration can help keep it fresh for a few days. However, it is best to eat it immediately after it reaches ripeness.
Apples
Apples lose their crispiness when refrigerated. You also don’t need to put them in a fridge because they can last several weeks at room temperature, and often fewer when you place them in the fridge.
