Watermelons and melons
Yes, in hot summer nothing can be tastier than a cold watermelon or melon. But all of them, firstly, take up too much space in your refrigerator. Secondly, cooling slows down the ripening process (and reduces the amount of beneficial antioxidants in melons). It is better to store whole watermelons and melons in room conditions and cool them immediately before eating.
But half-eaten slices can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Raw potatoes
Low temperatures change the starchy complex carbohydrates found in raw potatoes. Externally, you will not see it in any way, but the cold will affect the taste. The potatoes will become sweet and will seem lumpy, fibrous. By the way, this is how you can understand how the potatoes you bought were stored.
Normally, this vegetable should be kept in a box or a well-ventilated basket away from direct sunlight.
Honey
Due to the high sugar content, honey has become a natural preservative, which means it does not need cooling. But you can spoil it with cold: honey will harden and crystallize or, as we used to say, «candied». However, it can be returned to its previous state by holding the jar in hot water.
Chocolate
The same thing will happen to the paste as with honey — it will harden and until it thaws, it will not work to spread it on anything.
And in principle, chocolate is not stored in the refrigerator — it does not spoil, but absorbs the taste and smell of other products. In addition, after the refrigerator, a white plaque will appear on it.
Avocado
Here you need to see how ripe it is. If the avocado is fully ripe, it can be put in the refrigerator. If it is immature, leave it on the table so that it «ripens». It is not difficult to distinguish: ripe avocado is brownish, and the base of the stem is green.
Tomatoes
If you don’t want fresh tomatoes to taste like cardboard, don’t put them in the refrigerator. They continue to ripen even after they have been harvested, and the cold will not only stop the ripening process, but also dull their taste.
However, if you are sure that the tomatoes are ripe, you can put them in the refrigerator, but before eating, you should leave them for a few hours at room temperature. Then their taste will partially recover.
Onion
In the refrigerator, it will quickly become soft and even moldy. Onions belong next to potatoes, they like the same storage conditions: dryness, darkness and good ventilation.
Garlic
Fresh garlic in the refrigerator will quickly sprout green shoots. In addition, like onions, it will moldy faster in the cold. Put the garlic next to the potatoes and onions, it will be fine there.
Already crushed, but not used cloves, can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days in an airtight container. But the taste will already be distorted.
Bread
Many people believe that bread in the refrigerator will stay fresh longer. Partly true, in the cold, mold will not appear on it. But at the same time, even warmed bread will taste like rubber. But in the freezer, excess bread can be stored for up to a month.
Opened cans
Yes, they always write on canned food: after you open it, put it in the refrigerator. But! We are talking about the products themselves, not about the banks in which they were stored. If you remove the half-eaten canned food, as it is, in a metal or tin can, then the food may eventually have a metallic taste. Therefore, it is better to shift what is not finished into a food container, and already clean it in the cold.
Apples
By themselves, they can be stored in the refrigerator and will even crunch deliciously. But their «neighbors» on the shelf will not be well. Ripe apples secrete ethylene, which accelerates ripening. This means that other products will deteriorate faster. Therefore, apples in the refrigerator should lie exclusively in an airtight container.
Basil and other herbs
Basil, like any other plant, needs water first of all for freshness. And in the refrigerator, its leaves will quickly turn black. In addition, it will absorb other smells.
As for the rest of the greenery, it wilts in the refrigerator, and if you leave it in a store-bought film or bag, it will mold. The only option is to freeze.
Peaches
With them, as with other vegetables and fruits: they should ripen at room temperatures, or even in the sun, but in no case in the refrigerator. But it is also undesirable to clean ripe peaches in the cold for a long time — they are threatened with dehydration.
Olive oil
If olive oil is put in the refrigerator, then a precipitate of white flakes will appear in it — these are solid fats. It may not affect the quality, but the taste will deteriorate. The only butter that really needs to be stored in the refrigerator is nut butter.
