Although a meticulously organized fridge and clutter-free pantry can help any kitchen look neat and tidy, properly storing produce is more than just aesthetics. Whenever you put away your groceries, you might be tempted to toss all the fruits and vegetables in your crisper drawer, but keeping certain varieties together actually does more harm than good. “When storing fruits and vegetables, I have different ‘zones’ in my kitchen,” says Sarah Holden, deputy food director for The Pioneer Woman. That’s because certain combinations lead to faster spoilage and quicker quality decline.
The biggest contributor? Storing ethylene-producing foods with ethylene-sensitive ones. Ethylene is a gas that naturally promotes ripening, so when high ethylene producers like apples, bananas, and avocados are placed beside ethylene-sensitive produce like kale, cauliflower, and cucumbers, they can suffer from premature decay. Fruits and vegetables also have different storage needs: While some require refrigeration, others thrive at room temperature. Then, there are foods with powerful odors that can alter the taste of milder produce near it.
That’s why knowing which fruits and vegetables are incompatible is so important for longer-lasting, fresher-tasting produce. To protect the lifespan and flavor of your food, here are seven things you should never store together.
Onions and Potatoes
If you typically store onions and potatoes in the same place, you might want to think that decision. “Onions release a gas that causes potatoes to sprout, and potatoes have lots of moisture in them, which can make onions turn soft,” Holden explains. While both ingredients thrive in a cool, dark environment, such as a pantry or cabinet, separating them will prolong their shelf life. Store onions in breathable mesh bags or wire baskets, and place potatoes in paper bags or cardboard boxes.
Bananas and Broccoli
An ethylene-producing powerhouse, bananas are great if you want something to ripen. “I keep my unripened fruit on the counter with some bananas—they help the fruit they sit with ripen more quickly,” Holden notes. But if your produce is already ripe, placing them beside bananas will cause rapid spoilage. A prime example of this is storing bananas and broccoli together: The ethylene released from bananas will cause broccoli to turn yellow and rot. To prevent this from happening, refrigerate broccoli in the crisper drawer, and keep your bananas on the kitchen counter.
Tomatoes and Cucumbers
Juicy tomatoes and crisp cucumbers are delicious in a homegrown salad, but storing them together is a different story. Tomatoes (especially ripe ones) emit a good amount of ethylene, and cucumbers are highly sensitive to ethylene. Instead of grouping them together, slot cucumbers in a crisper drawer to maintain their crunchy consistency, and let tomatoes breathe on the counter, away from other ripening fruits.
Apples and Lettuce
In many households, apples and leafy greens like lettuce, spinach, and kale end up in the fridge together, but apples emit ethylene that can shorten the other’s lifespan. Prevent your greens from wilting and spoiling by storing apples and lettuce in separate crisper drawers. Apples flourish in plastic bags with poked holes, whereas lettuce tends to last longer after it’s washed, dried, and stored in an airtight container with a dry paper towel.
Pears and Leafy Greens
Another incompatible pairing? Pears and leafy greens. Stored next to lettuce, spinach, or kale, ethylene-emitting pears can cause the greens to yellow, wilt, and spoil faster. If your pears are still too firm, keep them at room temperature until they soften. For perfectly ripe pears, moving them to the fridge will help them last a few days longer—just be sure to separate them from your salad fixings.
Garlic and Mushrooms
Sautéing mushrooms with a little garlic creates a delicious flavor combination, but these two vegetables aren’t great storage companions. When stored together, they produce an excessively humid environment that can shorten the lifespan of both ingredients. Not to mention, mushrooms are highly absorbent, so they’ll easily soak up garlic’s pungent odor. Since garlic prefers a dry, well-ventilated area, it’s best kept in the pantry. Mushrooms, on the other hand, are better refrigerated in breathable packaging.
Avocado and Asparagus
To keep avocados and asparagus as fresh as possible, don’t store them together. As avocados ripen, they release ethylene gas, which can accelerate the aging process in asparagus, quickly turning the spears tough, limp, or less flavorful. Let unripe avocados soften on the counter, and once they reach the perfect texture, transfer them to the fridge—far away from asparagus.
