What Are the Best Storage Temperatures for Fruits, Vegetables and Meat?

Different vegetables and fruits come from different places, have different nutritional compositions, and require different storage temperatures. So how can you store them longer with less nutrient loss? Let's talk about this topic today!

I. The Most Suitable Storage Temperatures for Various Vegetables and Fruits

Most root and leafy vegetables are suitable for storage at temperatures close to freezing point. Most vegetables and fruits native to temperate and cold zones require a storage temperature of around 0°C, such as apples, pears, peaches, cauliflower, celery, etc.; most vegetables and fruits native to tropical and subtropical zones require temperatures above 0°C, for example bananas at 13°C, mangoes at 10°C, cucumbers at 12-13°C, green peppers at 9-12°C, etc.

If the storage temperature is higher than the optimum, it will accelerate the ripening and aging process and shorten the storage period; if the storage temperature is lower than the optimum, it will cause chilling injury and freezing injury. The critical low temperature for storage varies with different varieties.

1II. Storage Temperature and Recommended Storage Time Table for Main Vegetables:

Vegetables not suitablefor therefrigerator

When some vegetables are put in the refrigerator, not only do they fail to stay fresh, but their cells are damaged, nutrients such as vitamin C are lost, and they may even spoil more easily.

If stored in the refrigerator, green beans will have their texture greatly affected, so they should be kept indoors away from sunlight; pumpkin is best stored above 10°C, and in the refrigerator it quickly becomes soft, grows mold and turns sticky, losing its characteristic flavor; tomato is best stored above 10°C, and after low-temperature refrigeration it tends to become mushy or split, with black spots easily forming on the surface, and over time it becomes sour and rotten.

Although these vegetables are best stored at room temperature, the humidity in an ordinary home is generally not very high, around 60%, and this level of humidity is very unfavorable for storing vegetables. So even if you do not put them in the refrigerator, you still need to seal them in clean plastic bags or place them in airtight containers to prevent the vegetables from losing moisture.

2III. The Most Suitable Fresh-keeping Temperatures for Fruits

The suitable fresh-keeping temperature varies for different fruits

Fruits not suitable for refrigeration

Many fruits are not suitable for refrigerator storage to keep them fresh, especially tropical fruits such as mangoes, lychees and bananas. Mangoes are sensitive to cold; once placed in the refrigerator, black spots begin to appear within a few days. Lychees left in a 0°C environment for one day will develop blackened skins and altered flesh flavor. Bananas kept below 12°C tend to blacken and rot, and may even become moldy.

Besides tropical fruits, berry-type fruits such as persimmons lose their aroma at low temperatures, and their skins also deteriorate. None of these fruits are suitable for refrigerator refrigeration to achieve the purpose of preservation.

Tropical fruits such as bananas are not suitable for refrigeration preservation

Two, The most suitable preservation temperatures for meat products

The refrigeration preservation period of fresh meat is shorter than that of frozen meat

Meat is not suitable for storage after thawing

When frozen meat, frozen fish and the like are frozen, their cells have already been damaged due to the crystallization of water; once thawed, the damaged tissue cells will leak a large amount of nutrients, which will become nutrients for bacterial reproduction.

Thawed meat should not be put back into the refrigerator

Experiments have shown that if frozen yellow croaker is kept at 30°C for 6 hours, its spoilage rate is 1 times faster than that of fresh yellow croaker; if thawed egg yolk is kept at 18°C for 2 hours, the bacterial count increases by about 2 times. After 8 hours, the bacterial count increased by 50 times.

Nowadays urban people are busy with work and usually have little time to browse supermarkets. Many people choose to buy a week's or even a month's worth of food when shopping at the supermarket, take it home and keep it in the refrigerator, only to find that within a few days much of the food has already spoiled and cannot be eaten, causing great waste. Therefore, do not mistakenly think that once bought food is put in the refrigerator, everything is fine; knowing some common knowledge about food preservation is still very beneficial.

Below, the author introduces the operating points that most deserve attention when using a refrigerator. These points are the erroneous points that consumers are relatively prone to violate. Compare and see, have you committed any of these mistakes?

Three,Six forbidden zones for storing food in the refrigerator

1. Hot food must absolutely not be placed into a running electric refrigerator, because if the temperature sensor inside the refrigerator senses the temperature of the hot food, the refrigerator compressor will run nonstop, which not only wastes electricity but also affects the refrigeration effect for other foods.

2. Food stored in the refrigerator should not be too full or too tightly packed; gaps should be left to allow cold air convection. Whether it is a direct-cooling or air-cooling refrigerator, if the air inside the cabinet has no hot and cold air for heat exchange, the refrigerator may never stop running, which not only wastes electrical energy but also affects the service life of the refrigerator.

3. The refrigerator must be defrosted regularly, because the presence of a frost layer will affect the efficiency of cold transmission, and the refrigerator will also fail to reach the set temperature. This will place a great load on the refrigerator. To prevent frost from forming too quickly inside the refrigerator, the editor suggests putting all frozen compartment foods in freshness bags to prevent moisture evaporation and frosting.

4. Thawed meat and fish should be eaten as soon as possible and should not be placed back into the refrigerator for storage. If stored again, the activity of bacteria and enzymes in meat and fish will recover, possibly producing toxic histamine substances and bringing food safety hazards.

5. Bottled liquid beverages must not be placed in the freezer compartment, to avoid cracking the packaging bottles from freezing. They should be placed in the refrigerator compartment, with storage at around 4°C being best.

6. Refrigerator freshness boxes are greatly beneficial for food preservation. Leftover food must be placed in freshness boxes before it can be stored in the refrigerator; otherwise it is very easy to spoil and cause cross-contamination.

If conditions permit, eating freshly picked or freshly bought food is best of all.

Author Qisong Talks Home Appliances

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