Do you think everything in your kitchen is in their correct place? And what about your refrigerator? Well, actually it is mostly possible that there are a lot of bacteria hiding in your fridge because you keep foods in it that don’t belong there. If you worry about your health and about the food you consume, we have selected 20 foods of everyday use that you should not keep in the refrigerator.
1. AVOCADOS
It is not recommended to keep avocados in the fridge, as cold affects the process of the ripening of this fruit. So, you just need to keep your avocados outside the fridge, somewhere with room temperature where it can get ripe. To fasten the process of ripening, you can put avocado in a bag with an apple or even a banana, these fruits produce ethylene, the latter makes avocado to ripe faster. What if the avocado is already ripe? Well, in such case it’s time to it that avocado.
2. POTATOES
Do you know what happens to potatoes when they are kept in the refrigerator? They turn sweet and grainy. Cold temperature turns starch into sugar, this happens to all vegetables containing starch. So, you need to keep potatoes in dry places with good temperature. If the potato is cooked, you need to put it in the fridge to prevent the formation of bacteria.
3. CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT SPREAD
If you want to eat Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread in a soft and creamy consistency, then never put it in the fridge. Such spreads like Nutella become solid in the fridge and do not spread on bread anymore. Hazelnuts contain high-fat which solidifies in cold temperature turning the spread firm. If you are afraid that the spread will go bad outside the fridge, don’t be as the sugar in the spread prevents bacteria growth.
4. GARLIC
Garlic is an important food which shouldn’t be kept in the fridge, where it can immediately get molded. It is recommended to keep garlic is dry and cool places. Garlic needs good ventilation so it cannot be kept in closed containers.
5. COFFEE
For all the coffee lovers out there, you shouldn’t keep your coffee in the fridge and most importantly in the freezer. You can keep coffee in the fridge only if you consume it rarely and you don’t want it to go off. But it is not recommended to keep it in the fridge as the humidity there takes all the aroma and taste of the coffee.
6. ONIONS
Keeping onions in the fridge is not the best idea, as the humidity makes onion soft, hence it starts rotting faster. Uncut onion should be kept in the mesh bag (in which you by them) in a dry place. Onion contains starched which become sugar when kept in the cold. So, keep your onion in dry places, but if you have half an onion you can keep it in the fridge to keep it fresh until the next use.
7. HONEY
If you’ve ever put honey in the refrigerator then you know, that in the fridge honey becomes crystallized and turns into a sugary consistency. So, we don’t recommend keeping honey in the fridge. Actually, honey is one of those products that does not go bad unless you keep them in proper conditions.
8. BASIL
If you love fresh herbs, then you probably know that the refrigerator is the best place to keep them fresh. But this is not the case with all herbs and basil is not an exception. When kept in the fridge basil turns into a brown smudgy consistency. To avoid this, you need to trim the basil stems and keep them in a glass full of water which keeps them fresh and healthy. This way you become a double winner, by keeping your greens fresh and decorating your kitchen.
9. OLIVE OIL
Where do you keep your olive oil? If in the fridge, then we’ll recommend you to take it out and keep it in a cool cupboard. After keeping olive oil in the fridge for some time you will notice it changing its consistency. This happens due to the humidity in the fridge. The oil can turn cloudy and even get thicker. But if you have one in the fridge and notice it changing its appearance, don’t throw it away, just take it out of the fridge and keep it in a dry and cool place.
10. STONE FRUIT
If you love to eat tasty and juicy fruits, then you better not keep stone fruits, such as peach, apricot, etc., in the fridge. When on cold temperature such fruits stop ripening and lose all their aromas. Before eating a fruit, you should keep it in room temperature to let it get ripe properly and to keep all its delicious tastes.
11. KETCHUP
This one might be surprising, but you don’t need to keep ketchup in the refrigerator as it acidity prevents the production of microorganisms. Also, some people say that ketchup tastes even better when kept out of the fridge. But, of course, if you rarely use ketchup and you have an open one you can keep it in the fridge just to prolong its lifespan.
12. CHOCOLATE
All the chocolate lovers like to keep their sweets in the fridge as if to prolong their lifespan. But in fact, the cold is damaging its texture and of course the sweet taste. When kept in the refrigerator chocolate gets granulose and this process is known as “sugar bloom”. It visibly changes the appearance of the chocolate covering it with a white-ish layer.
13. BANANAS
Got some bananas and you can’t decide whether to put them in the fridge or not? Well, first you need to check if the bananas are ripe or not yet. Unripe bananas are green, solid and need to be kept in room temperature to get ripe. While, if the bananas are already ripe you need to keep them in the refrigerator to prevent them from going bad and turning brown.
14. TOMATOES
If you love ripe, juicy tomatoes full of flavor, then it is not recommended to keep them in the fridge as well. It is proven that keeping some fruits and vegetables in the fridge make them lose all their specific tastes and deliciousness. The best place to keep tomatoes, especially unripe ones, is under the sunlight. It makes the tomato sweeter and juicier.
15. SEALED TUNA
Many people think they should keep canned tuna in the fridge just because it is a fish. But where do you take that fish from? Right, in the non-refrigerated section of the supermarket. It is better to keep sealed tuna in places with room temperature, preferably in a cupboard. Only when it is open you can keep it in the refrigerator.
16. MUSTARD
This next one is quite debatable, as we can’t say you cannot keep it in the fridge as it will not do any harm to it. Mustard is one of those food items that is self-preserving and does not need to be kept in the fridge. But it is all up to your taste, if you like chilled mustard than keep it in the fridge if you like it warmer, keep it in room temperature. It is all up to you.
17. AGED CHEESE
18. CUCUMBER
Next one might surprise you but cucumber is also in the list of vegetables that do not need to be kept in the fridge. Research has shown that cucumber loses its aroma and taste while kept in the fridge. So, keep cucumbers in room temperature to maintain its delicious and natural taste.
19. BREAD
You have probably noticed that many people like to keep bread in the fridge or maybe you are also one of those people. Well, if so, we do not recommend doing it further. As when kept in the fridge, bread hardens and dries quickly. All you need to do is keep it outside the fridge in a dry are in a package. And make sure it is closed properly, so it will not get dry.
20.SPICES
Have you noticed that spices stick together when kept in the fridge? You can see small balls in spices, which happens because of the humidity. Also, spices kept in the refrigerator lose all their aroma and taste. So, to retain the natural and rich taste of the spices, it is recommended to keep in a cupboard, or in other dry places with good temperature.
