Five chef certified tips for storing your groceries more effectively—better flavour, longer shelf life, reduced waste

Oct 4th, 2016
Mark Best
Mark Best
Oct 4th, 2016

It's no secret that food waste is one of the biggest problems facing our planet today—from the huge environmental cost of producing food that goes to waste, to the sad irony of "unsellable" imperfect food while millions starve. There are plenty of people looking for ways to limit food waste, from food waste supermarkets to OzHarvest initiatives, but the ongoing problem isn't just a global food system issue. In fact, we can start to curb the problem by the practices in our own home (Australians throw away around $10 billion worth of food annually), and on the most selfish level, even save ourselves cash when our food lasts a little longer.  

For iconic chef and AEG ambassador Mark Best the first step in the chain is simple; store your food better at home and you'll get more out of it. 

According to AEG food documentary Tasteology, Episode two: Chill; "Great taste can only come from treating our ingredients with the respect and love that they deserve." Where better to start than with home fridge storage?

Overbuying and the lack of knowledge on how to store food leads to huge amounts of personal food waste, so it's worth knowing what each section of your fridge is designed for and how to get the most out of it. The way we store our food can affect the texture, flavour and of course shelf life—with produce lasting up to three times longer when you do it right.

Best shares the five things you should know about storing produce at home.

Store fish and meat at low temperatures where you have more humidity

"Fish and meat should be at the bottom of the fridge purely for safe food handling reasons," says the chef. "Raw and cooked produce should also be kept on separate shelves. Meat and fish suffer most from dehydration if left uncovered." He suggests tightly cling-filming meat and fish in a deep dish for best storage results, vacuum packing or (as the ultimate) sous vide sealing to retain moisture.

Ripe vegetables must be in the crisper

"[The crisper] is slightly warmer and more humid than the open shelves," says Best. "Making sure there is good stock rotation and shopping on a daily basis for the most perishable items is the best way to mitigate waste." Failing that, take note of the settings you can often find on your crisper drawers and set them accordingly. You'll be surprised what a difference it makes when a strawberry is stored in the best fridge conditions for a strawberry… and not a carrot.

Potatoes and apples can stay out of the fridge

"Potatoes and apples should be stored in a dark cool place," says Best, pointing out that there's a difference between cool and chilled. The fridge is a little more than cool. Or at least it should be, and that can have a negative effect on some produce. "As most people don't have cellars anymore, a dark pantry cupboard is good." 

Store tomatoes separately

"Tomatoes should be stored separate to other fruit and vegetables because they have a large amount of ethylene which can cause other produce to go bad much faster," says Best. "Tomatoes taste best when sun ripened and hot from the garden. At home, room temperature is best to ripen them fully and to give good flavour." Keep them out of direct sunlight, but still at room temperature for that perfect tomato experience.

Herbs should never go into the fridge—not ever

"Soft herbs like basil are like cut flowers," says Best. "They should simply be put into a glass of clean water in a warm spot for best storage. If you buy too much, make a pesto." There's a bit more room to move with hard herbs like thyme and bay however. "[The] leaves can be immediately frozen in sandwich bags and used as required. They retain a lot of their flavour if stored this way."



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