Food pro shares free hack to 'revive' vegetables that have 'lost their crunch'

30 August 2023 , 15:47

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Some veg can go soft if left for too long (stock photo) (Image: Getty Images)

We all know how important it is to incorporate plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables into our diets, but it's not always easy to do when the produce goes mouldy or loses its structure within just a few days of being brought home from the supermarket. Vegetables such as carrots, celery, and cucumber can be notoriously difficult to deal with, as they're prone to losing their signature crunch and becoming soft and limp in the fridge.

This happens because moisture has been pulled out of them by dry air in the fridge, but thankfully, you don't have to resort to chucking your veg in the bin as soon as it stops being crunchy. According to a food storage guru, there's actually an easy hack that can "revive" your limp veggies and restore their crunch in no time.

Jamie Crummie, co-founder of the Too Good To Go app that helps shops sell surplus stock to the public at low prices to prevent them from throwing it away, said that all you need to do is chop your limp carrots and celery into sticks and chuck them in an air-tight container with some cold water.

Speaking to The Express, he said: "Certain vegetables like cucumber, celery or carrots can go soft and lose their crunch if left for a while. To avoid this, simply chop into sticks and place them in a jar of cold water in your fridge (make sure it's airtight!). Just remember to change the water every day or so to maintain the freshness. This hack also works to revive vegetables that have already softened!"

Reviving food rather than throwing it away not only helps to cut down on food waste but also saves you money as it means you won't have to buy more carrots to replace the soft ones you threw away.

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The veggie storage hack comes after it was recently revealed that many of us don't know how to store our onions correctly, and it's resulting in us chucking away more of the tear-inducing veg than we should. Food experts claim onions need somewhere cool, dark, and dry to help them stay fresh for longer, so they should be stored in a "well-ventilated basket" in a dark cupboard, as they also don't like freezing temperatures.

And, bizarrely, you should never store your onions with your potatoes. Recipe developer Sarah Jampel explained: "I keep mine in the cabinet with all of my baking dishes, but in the future, I aspire to buy crates' worth and stow them in a garage or cellar. You also want to make sure they're separated from potatoes - which are prone to rotting if kept nearby."

Zahna Eklund