Veggie and Herb Storage

[JBethell]

My biggest problem in the kitchen has to be where/how to store certain veggies and herbs.

I know the basics, i store garlic in a terra cotta container, onions and tomatoes in a basket on the countertop, and bananas go into the crisper drawer once they have a touch of brown on the peel.

Other than that I find myself constantly searching the internet after every trip to the grocery store. Does anybody know of a quick reference on the internet that I can print and keep in the kitchen?? Something that has the common herbs and vegetables and some degree of accuracy.

THANKS!!

[jcattles]

I rinse my fresh herbs then wrap in a paper towel and put in a baggie. They stay fresh for quite awhile. I'm trying the Green Bags, but don't see much difference yet. Maybe we eat our fruit and veggies to fast.

[relizabeth]

a pain in the neck, but well worth it: store cilantro in a jar with water wrapped in a plastic bag in the fridge. lasts a good week or more.

[JBethell]

will that work with other herbs as well? i tried it with some basil, except i didn't know to put a bag over it, and it wilted overnight.

[rebs]

basil tends to not like cold and wilts faster in it. for basil i stand it in a jar of water and leave it out on the counter. change the water every other day and it will last for at least a week.

for cilantro, i wash then spin it in a salad spinner then store it in a ziplock bag with a paper towel. change out the paper towel every couple of days and the cilantro lasts for at least a week.

for rosemary and thyme, i just put them in little sandwich bags and throw them in the freezer (a trick i learned from chowhound). it keeps all the flavor and it's easier to pull the leaves off the stems. i've had the same bunches of rosemary and thyme in the freezer for at least a couple months now and haven't noticed a decrease in flavor.

[lgss]

Don't know. We store bananas on a banana tree (similar to the one pictured here: http://www.asontv.com/kitchen/banana-... ). We keep onions, garlic, sweet potatoes, potatoes (in a closed brown paper bag), winter squash, and apples out on the counter. Most other things go in the crisper drawers in the fridge. We're vegan so we use both fridge drawers for produce.

[JBethell]

I keep bananas on a hook under the counter until they're ripe, then after that they go into the crisper drawer. The peels get brown, but the bananas inside stay good for a week or more!!