When it comes to food, our first instinct is usually to refrigerate it so it stays fresh longer. But that isn’t always the case. It goes a long way in preserving our food and maintaining its quality. But did you know that despite our popular belief, refrigerating certain foods can change their flavour and not in a good way? It can even reduce their nutritional quality or accelerate the spoiling process. In today’s article, we’ll tell you about at least foods that you should never refrigerate from melons, cakes, peanut butter, and honey to bread and more.
Words from researchgate.net Our refrigerators have temperatures around 8 °C. They can vary from around 0 °C near the freezer to about 8 °C at the other end of the chamber. If the food items contain those ‘smart’ microbes, they grow and proliferate fooling us who believe that our food is safe in the refrigerator. Nature has several surprises in store for us.
20 Foods That You Should Never Refrigerate
Even with the fact that we love to keep our foods well preserved, the following foods are not to be kept in a refrigerator;
1. Tomatoes
The texture of tomatoes can be hit or miss depending on how you store them. If you put them in the refrigerator, they can become mealy soft and lose their flavour. Instead, store them on the counter at room temperature for one to two days, keeping them longer than that might make them go bad.
2. Melons
Melons normally do best outside the refrigerator. Once refrigerated they tend to break down and become powdery and grainy, so to keep the flavour intact, they need to be stored at room temperature. However, after cutting, you should store them in the refrigerator for three to four days anything long is not advised.
3. Potatoes
Potatoes are a fan favourite because of their versatility, but they should never be placed in the refrigerator. Cold temperatures can break down the starches in them, changing the taste and texture. for optimal storage. store in a cool dry space to keep them fresh.
4. Basil (cent leave)
Basil is a wonderful herb to have around the house. Its distinctive taste makes it the perfect cooking partner to spice up your kitchen. It is important to note, it should be kept at a temperature of at least 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Anything less than this and it can cause black spots to come into sight on the plant and ruin its taste. It is optimally important to make sure to keep it in a little bit of water and shade. That way the herb will last much longer than it would if it was in the refrigerator.
5. Bananas
Banana is a tropical fruit, so it’s safe to say that it doesn’t benefit from the chilly climate of a refrigerator. The cold temperature can have the reverse effect by turning them black quicker. When buying your bananas. Be sure to catch them before they’re ripe so they can mature at room temperature in your kitchen.
6. Onions
Onions don’t just rely on warmer climates in the refrigerator. They depend on clear and open-air circulation to keep them fresh. Whether they’re chopped or fried, you need to look after them the same way you would any other food. Strangely you should keep them far away from your potatoes as they can speed up the onion’s ageing processes. It’s safe to say these foods don’t get on. Make sure they’re kept in separate parts of the kitchen with neither in the refrigerator.
7. Cucumbers
It’s a common mistake but storing cucumbers in the refrigerator will make them watery and pitted. If you do choose to refrigerate them it’s best to wrap them in plastic to minimise moisture.
8. Butter
There’s nothing worse than trying to spread rock-hard butter, this can be very annoying to do. The good news is there’s no need. Depending on temperatures you can store butter on the counter for a week or so. The best plan is not to refrigerate butter but keep it a room temperature and take it out one spoon at a time. If the weather is very hot, you may opt for smaller quantities.
9. Honey
Honey is a versatile natural sweetener with a seemingly never-ending life, but it should never be stored in the refrigerator. The colder temperatures alter its chemical makeup of it and cause it to crystallise and seize up.
10. White wine
It’s no news that white wines are best served chilled. However, storing bottles in the refrigerator isn’t the best option for mature white wines such as Chardonnay, while sparkling wines and lighter white wines should be served at colder temperatures. Complex whites are better to be stored at slightly warmer temperatures. If you have one, a wine refrigerator set to 50 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit is an ideal option.
11. Oils
Pretty much all oils are better stored at room temperature. If the oil has a lower saturated fat content, such as safflower or sunflower, it’ll benefit from being kept cool but most highly saturated oil is meant to be kept at a warm temperature. So store it in a dark cabinet or the refrigerator door. The only ones that you must refrigerate are nut-based oils.
12. Garlic
If you want your garlic to sprout early, then refrigerators will take care of that for you. It’ll also attract mould on the skin and within the inner layers of each bulb. So really, the choice is up to you, but we recommend keeping it somewhere dry and warm. The best thing about accidentally putting your garlic in the refrigerator is that all the rotting occurs from the inside of the cloves so you won’t be able to see it.
13. Hot Sauces and Ketchup
Most hot sauces contain vinegar and certain preservatives that slow down moths from growing. Although keeping your hot sauces cold speeds up the moulding process. It just might reduce their strength. You might think you have taste buds made of steel, but it’s your refrigerator helping you next time keep your bottle of Tabasco on the kitchen counter and see how impressive you can be with it. We bet you’ll notice the difference.
14. Chocolate
It’s a bitter truth but the refrigerator is actually not the best place for your bar or box of chocolates. The temperature and moisture of the refrigerator can interfere with the taste, colour and texture. Chocolate, most especially cocoa butter chocolates, also absorb the smell of surrounding food so it’s best kept away from other odorous ingredients. Instead, store them in a cool dry place in an airtight container if you’ve already opened them. Chocolate, especially dark ones, can be good for your health.
15. Peaches
Don’t be tempted to slip fresh peaches into the refrigerator if they’re not ripe yet and ready. Like many other stone fruits, cold temperatures hinder the ripening process, meaning you’ll be left waiting longer to dig in. They’re also at a higher risk of spoiling. Store them on the countertop instead and only chill if they’re about ready to tuck into.
16. Cheese
It may sound counterintuitive to keep your cheese out of the refrigerator because it’s a dairy product. But hard cheeses like Gouda and cheddar or fancy cheeses like Pecorino Rom retain their flavour better without refrigeration.
17. Coffee Beans
Coffee beans have no place in the refrigerator unless you want to ruin your brew. The humidity in the refrigerator can cause condensation to form on the beans which can put a damper on the flavour of both grounds and hold the beans. For the perfect cup of coffee at home. Store the beans in an airtight container in the pantry or right on the counter.
18. Bread
Bread, mainly white bread must not be put in the refrigerator. The reason being when kept in a cool dry place bread dry up very fast. The best way to store it is to take out the amount that you would be eating in the next four days and then deep freeze the rest of it and microwave it when you want to use them.
19. Citrus Fruits
Citruses like lemons, limes, oranges and grapefruits are all great examples of food that do not need refrigeration. These juicy fruits are best preserved in a countertop fruit basket instead. If you don’t think you’ll get around to eating your fruit for a few weeks, carve out a cool, dry, well-ventilated place. Oh, Like your cupboard for them to hang out until you’re ready to gobble them up.
20. Cake
While some cakes need to be stored in the refrigerator, frosting-free cakes and those topped with ganache or buttercream will be fine for up to three days stored in an airtight container on the counter. storing your cake isn’t a bad idea but in most cases due to the butter used in making these cakes, it could lead to a change in taste or even get its icing to soften, Eating too much cake or sugar for that matter is never a good idea. It’s very bad for your body and can lead to many health problems. It’s always a good idea to know your sugar levels so that you can control them at the right time before it causes any harm. You can do this by getting to know the signs of high blood sugar levels, or recognizing the warning signs that you’re overeating sugar.
Conclusion
Keeping our meals in a good condition is very important, so we try to preserve them to avoid spoilage. It is very important to keep in mind that temperatures differ for the preservation of different foods and as such different conditions may not be suitable for some foods. Therefore, simply storing food in the fridge does not provide any protection against spoilage or food poisoning.
In this article, we have tried to list some of these foods that may not be adaptive to preservation under high cold conditions as provided by a refrigerator, keep in mind that the preservation of cooked foods in the refrigerator isn’t bad but note that some fresh and processed foods may not be good to be kept in cold conditions due to some biological reasons.
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