Nothing is more disappointing than being in the middle of cooking and realising onions have become soft, mushy or even mouldy but this often happens if they are not stored properly.
Karen Lamar, an expert from Organic Cotton Mart has shared that onions should never be placed in the fridge or on your kitchen counter as they need to be protected from light and humidity.
She said: “The rule of thumb for storing whole onions is to keep them in a place that’s cool, dry, and dark. One of the main reasons that onions go bad is that they sprout.
“So, you need to keep whole onions from not sprouting and the best way to do that is store them in cellars, pantries, storerooms, or basements that do not get direct sunlight and moisture.”
Where should you store whole onions?
The best place to store onions is also in a drawer or cupboard in the kitchen as it is dark and cool enough to keep them fresh for weeks or even months longer.
The key to keeping onions fresh is to keep them away from water, and the humidity in the fridge will cause onions to absorb the moisture which will cause them to go mouldy.
Leaving onions stored on the kitchen counter will expose them to sunlight which accelerates ripening and sprouting which causes them to spoil quickly.
Once you have stored onions somewhere dark, dry and cool then keep them in a container with steady airflow as onions need to breathe to stay fresh.
Some of the best containers to store onions is baskets, paper bags or mesh bags but one unusual old-school storage trick is to even keep them in a pair of tights or pantyhose.
Karen said: “A pantyhose mimic a mesh bag by letting the onions breathe. You can go for a used and washed pantyhose or a new one.
“Take a pair of scissors and snip off the top portion of the stockings. Then push onions down right to the toe end, seal it with a knot, and repeat the steps every time you throw in an onion.”
The pantyhose will keep onions well ventilated tieing them in a know stops the onions from bruising each other.
Yellow onions stored this way will stay fresh for around two to three months longer than they normally would while red onions have a slightly shorter shelf life and will last one to two months longer.
Where should you store chopped onions?
Chopped-up onions need to be kept in an airtight container to keep moisture out and then placed in the fridge.
This is the exact opposite of how whole onions should be stored but it is the best way to prevent moisture and bacteria from spoiling the chopped-up onions.
Sliced onions stored this way will typically stay fresh between seven and 10 days, but check regularly for signs of spoilage.
Karen said: “If you’re looking for ways to preserve sliced, diced, and cut onions, look only towards your fridge or freezer.
“Stick to air-tight glass containers as it’ll become a task to eliminate the onion-y smell of the plastic ones. Refrigeration will make them consumable for up to a week. However, if you want to use them several days later, consider freezing the onions in zip lock bags.”
