"While we wish our fruits would last longer, there's no magic trick to prevent that banana from turning to sticky sludge - there's only science. Science tells us that bananas continue ripening after they've been picked and emit ethylene gas, which makes them ripen faster and often means you'll end up using those bananas for banana bread more than a morning smoothie bowl."
"Contrary to popular practice, Bonin recommends keeping bananas out of the refrigerator, if possible. "I never put it in a fridge or anything like that," Bonin says, sharing that she typically buys bananas under-ripe, waiting for them to hit peak ripeness "by the way that they smell." In cold temperatures, Bonin admits that bananas often turn dark too quickly, but never actually reach ripeness, which is usually what happens when you store bananas in the refrigerator."
"The cold slows the ripening process, which can be handy for over-ripe bananas, but a hindrance with under-ripe or barely-ripe fruits. Even worse is when customers "put the fruit right in the same plastic bag right to the fridge," according to Bonin, which she says can cause "a lot of humidity build up," hindering the banana's ripening."
Bananas continue ripening after harvest and emit ethylene gas, which accelerates ripening and can make them overripe quickly. Refrigeration slows the ripening enzymes that convert starch to sugar and can darken banana skins without allowing full ripeness, making it unhelpful for under-ripe fruit. Buying bananas under-ripe and letting them ripen on the kitchen counter—in a sunless, moderately cool spot—produces sweeter, softer fruit and allows ripeness to be judged by smell. Refrigeration can be useful to extend life of already overripe bananas, but storing bananas in plastic bags before refrigerating traps humidity and hinders ripening.
Read at Tasting Table
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]