The refrigerator, as called as fridge to make things easier is used by us all to dump all our food items to prevent them from getting spoilt. But do we really need to refrigerate all the items that we are tossing in the refrigerator? There are some foods that do not require to be kept cold and can survive the natural atmosphere.
Let have a look at those food that should be kept out of the refrigerator:
- Hot sauce
You don’t need to store this item in the fridge. It is already made of preservatives and ingredients which do not get spoilt when kept at room temperature.
- Potatoes
Potatoes are best kept outside and covered. They need to be kept in a dry place, away from dampness. Potatoes if kept in the refrigerator will convert the starch present in it into a sweet grainy texture, so that you land up with sweeter grainy potatoes.
- Garlic
If garlic is kept in the fridge, it will not only leave your refrigerator with a strong stinky smell but also shoot out green stalks that also give the garlic a sticky texture. So keep your garlic in an open dry place.
- Bread
Bread gets dried out in the refrigerator. So keep the bread that you need to use immediately or in a day or two outside and freeze the rest.
- Onions
Onions need to be kept in a dry place, preferably with lots of air. So a basket of onions kept in the kitchen balcony is the ideal place to store these food items. Onions rot easily in places where there is too much moisture, so keep them away from the refrigerator.
- Tomatoes
All of us think that tomatoes are best kept fresh in the refrigerator. But the fact is that tomatoes stop ripening when they are kept in the fridge. Apart from the ripening issue, the temperature of the refrigerator ruins the flavor and texture of the tomatoes making it all grainy or mealy. Store these red wonders in a basket in a cool and dry place. Once ripe, they last for a maximum of three days.
- Coffee
The refrigerator creates condensation, which ruins the flavor and texture of coffee. So it’s best to leave coffee in an air tight container in the pantry. If you really have to stock a lot of coffee then consider storing it in the freezer, sealed properly and away from the door.
- Honey
Honey is one miracle of nature that never gets spoilt even if its stored outside for years. Honey is always best consumed at room temperature. The fridge turns it into a solid state.
- Olive Oil
Olive oil turns into a solid state in the refrigerator, like butter. Olive oil will not get spoilt at room temperature for years together. There is no harm in storing it in the fridge. The only problem you will face is to get it to thaw and return to its original state.
- Pumpkin and squashes
All winter squashes will last for months in the open.
So now that you know what needs to be kept outside your refrigerator, save that space for more perishables food items.
Written by: Rasha Ashraf
