Now that the weather is getting colder, many people are preparing their favorite stews, soups or other hearty dishes – and one of the main ingredients in most hearty recipes is onion.
There’s nothing worse than reaching for a vegetable only to find that they’ve gone bad before their use-by date, but you can help keep onions out of the fridge and in the right place in the kitchen for longer.
The best place to store whole onions
Chuck Sillari, chef and founder of Mortadella Head, says he keeps his onions in the pantry, but you can also store them anywhere that’s dark, cool, and airy.
She said, “I keep my uncut, whole, raw onions in a basket in my pantry. I like an open basket because it allows for good air circulation and that way you get maximum shelf life.
“Proper ventilation is quite important because you want the onions to stay dry. A lack of air movement can cause dampness and is not good for stored bulbs.”
The key to making sure your onions stay fresh is to keep them out of water, as storing them in an enclosed space allows moisture to build up, which causes the onions to mold.
Heat and light also increase the germination of the bulbs, causing the bulbs to turn green and have a bitter taste, which is why it is important to store them somewhere dark.
Keep whole onions out of the fridge as it is too cold and damp to stay fresh, and instead store them at room temperature in a cupboard or drawer if you don’t have a pantry.
Stored in a cool, dark, well-ventilated area, onions can stay fresh for a month or two longer.
The best way to store cut onions
Once cut, an onion will probably only last a few days as it starts to lose a lot of moisture quickly and can become a hot spot for bacteria if not stored properly.
While a whole onion needs plenty of air and is kept out of the cold to stay fresh, the opposite is true for a sliced onion as you need to limit how much air it is exposed to.
Chuck said, “Once an onion is peeled, sliced, or diced, it should be stored in the refrigerator…wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.”
Keeping sliced onions in an airtight environment limits the amount of airborne bacteria that can reach the surface, keeping them fresh for much longer.
You can also put the sliced onions in a container with a lid or a sandwich bag if you prefer, as both will also reduce exposure to air.
Sliced onions are best stored in the refrigerator, because the cooler temperature limits the growth of bacteria, so the onion pieces do not go moldy.
Chuck said, “If I put the cut onions in a bag or plastic wrap, I throw them in the crisper box. It’s the best way to keep other things in the fridge from smelling like onions.”
When sliced onions are sealed and stored in the refrigerator, they usually stay fresh for 7-10 days longer.
