17 Easy Hacks For Fresher Food

The secret to fresher food? Dedicating a few extra minutes to prepping and storing your groceries.

We partnered with Fresh & Easy, a new kind of market, to bring you 17 of the best hacks we’ve seen for keeping your favorite foods fresh. Put them to use and you’ll start mistaking your kitchen for your local farmer’s market. Minus that weird guy with the guitar.

Martin Poole via Getty Images

Refrigerate Cut Avocados With Cut Onions

Lisa Lin

Avocados are creamy, delicious and nutritious but you don’t always need the entire thing at once. To keep your avocado halves green, refrigerate them in a container with a cut onion.

Soak Sliced Apples In Ginger Ale

Michelle Sybert

Apples are the perfect healthy snack. Keep them from oxidizing by soaking slices in ginger ale for 10 minutes.

Wash Berries In Vinegar

Live Simply

How do you get your berries to last longer? It’s all about how you wash them. Try out this vinegar bath to keep your blackberries, strawberries and blueberries fresher than ever.

Store Mushrooms In A Paper Bag

Shelley Shepard

Instead of refrigerating mushrooms in the plastic container they came in, store them in a brown paper bag to keep them firm and dry.

Freeze And Preserve Fresh Herbs In Olive Oil

Jessie Cross

You may be used to freezing vegetables and fruit to keep them fresh but did you know freezing basil, chives and rosemary works wonders too? Put herbs in an ice cube tray filled with olive oil or melted butter before freezing and you’ll be able to enjoy flavorful meals more often.

Store Onions, Garlic And Shallots In A Paper Bag With Holes

Monica Matheny

Putting onions, garlic and shallots in punched paper bags keeps these flavorful veggies firm and fresh.

Store Cookies With A Slice Of Bread

Fresh & Easy

A slice of bread keeps those irresistible cookies you bought from the store tasting freshly baked for days.

Separate Lettuce With Paper Towels

Andrea Dekker

Layer leaves with paper towels to enjoy crisp, seasonal salads all week long.

Wrap Celery In Foil

Mary Younkin

Covered in aluminum foil, unwashed celery stays crisp and ready-to-use in soups, salads or as a snack for up to five weeks.

Pack Prepared Salads In Mason Jars

Julia Mirabella

Planning lunch for the busy week ahead? Storing prepared salads in mason jars keeps them fresh in your fridge for 4-5 days.

Peel, Cut And Freeze Ginger

Katie Kimball of Kitchen Stewardship

When you first buy ginger root, peel and cut it into slices or chunks and place in the freezer...and then say hello to homemade ginger ale, ginger tea and carrot-ginger soup for many months to come.

Refrigerate Nuts And Seeds

Rachel's Nourishing Kitchen

You might think the refrigerator is the last place to store nuts and seeds, but storing your almonds, walnuts and sunflower seeds in containers in a cool climate will actually keep them good--longer.

Store Potatoes With An Apple

Jihyun David

Turns out the “apple a day” motto keeps your spuds in good health, too. Store potatoes with an apple to keep them fresh.

Put Asparagus In Water Under A Plastic Bag

Alejandra Ramos

Asparagus stays fresh uncooked for about three days but this super-easy trick using a glass jar, water and a plastic bag keeps your veggies crisp for a full week.

Give Eggs The Eggs-Water Test