Vinegar Rinse

Back to the fresh strawberries! I heard from friends about rinsing them in vinegar to make them last a little longer. I decided to try it and see if it worked. I got a half flat of strawberries from the farmers market and they were beautiful. I was working and couldn't get to them for several days and by the second day they were starting to get soft. I decided to freeze most of them but wanted some to take to work the last day.

I got a big bowl and put the strawberries that I wanted to keep fresh in it. I got a measuring cup and did 1/4 cup vinegar and 3/4 cup water. I dumped that in the bowls with the strawberries and gently hand tossed the berries in the water. I let them sit while I cleaned and cut up the berries I wanted to freeze. After I finished with those berries I returned to the berries sitting in the vinegar water. I drained the water and rinsed them with running water. I ate the few that were already getting mushy with no bitter vinegar taste and placed them into the fridge.

I was very surprised that 3 and 4 days later I still had beautiful strawberries that hadn't molded or turned to mush! I will be doing this every time I get some fresh fruit. I am pretty sure this will work on most berries but don't know about other fruits like peaches or plums. I can't wait until peaches are in season and I can find out!

-R