I love strawberries! Well, maybe, not as much as I love mangoes. Every year, I always look forward to the strawberry season so I can enjoy it deliciously fresh! I tend to buy one box of strawberries which typically holds 3 kilograms of strawberries. And that’s a lot! More often than not, the strawberries start to get mushy before I could use all of them.  I know that the easiest solution would be to buy just a small amount every time. But in the fresh produce store where I buy my fruits and vegetables, I pay less by buying the box than buying the 250 or 500 grams packs.

 It doesn’t matter  how you like your strawberries (with whipped cream, meringue frosting, as a smoothie or alone) what’s important is enjoying them at their best: fresh! Fresh and not mushy at all. 

Here are some ways of storing your fresh strawberries in the fridge and still keeping it fresh like the first day!

• Do not wash then store it. Just wash the strawberries you will use.
• If the strawberries are dirty when you bought them, just clean them by wiping the dirty pieces with a damp cloth. Make sure they’re dry before you store them in the fridge.
• Store your strawberry in a shallow plastic pan or tub without overcrowding them.
• Do not pile them up on top of one another. Just line them up in just one loose pile.
• If there are less than perfect pieces, do not store them with the good ones. You can use them first.
• Do not take off the stem of the strawberry. It will keep water or moisture from entering the fruit.
• If your strawberries comes in the plastic container with holes, don’t throw that container. You can use it again to store strawberries.
• If you will be storing your strawberries in a container without holes, cover it with a plastic fil and carefully punch holes in the film taking much care not to touch the strawberries with the utensil used to punch the holes.T
• Take the strawberries you will be using out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before using them. Wash them thoroughly in a strainer. Do not just dump them inside a bowl of water. Drain them well in your strainer. Do not dump them into a plate after draining. Take them out by scooping with your hands.

Try to use and enjoy the strawberries in 2 to 4 days after you bought them.  This way, you will enjoy the fruits at their best!

Related articles

• Berry Resource: Uses for Strawberries (berries.com)
• Indian Strawberries (livinglavidamommy.wordpress.com)
• Strawberry Around the World (berries.com)
• 20 Ideas for Strawberries (thesavingsmomma.com)