Food Tip: Wash Berries in H2O w a touch of Vinegar

March 3, 2012 9:20:16 PM

Rinse Berries in a Vinegar Solution to Keep Them Fresh Longer and Mold-Free

lifehacker.com

It's pretty disappointing to come home with fresh, scrumptious berries only to find them rotting and covered in mold just a few days later. Cook's Illustrated says a little vinegar solution can keep that fuzzy mold off your delicate berries and extend their life.
The vinegar and water solution destroys bacteria and mold spores, helping the berries last longer. Here are the instructions for the best way to wash, dry, and store berries:

1. Wash berries in bowl with 3 cups water mixed with 1 cup white vinegar. Drain in colander and rinse under running water.

2. Place berries in salad spinner lined with 3 layers of paper towels. Spin for 15 seconds or until berries are completely dry.

3. Store berries in paper towel-lined sealable container, keeping lid slightly open to allow excess moisture to escape.

Alternately, you could just dunk berries in hot water to give them a few extra days of mold-free life, but the vinegar rinse might be more effective. Reddit user am4zonreports that using a vinegar rinse helps raspberries last a week or more and strawberries almost two weeks.