Most refrigerators have at least two vegetable/fruit drawers near the bottom of the unit. Officially, these are known as humidity drawers. They keep your produce as fresh as possible until you can use it. If you find your lettuce is wilting or your carrots are going soft shortly after you stick them in the vegetable drawer, then it may be the humidity. Read our five tips to help your humidity drawers keep your fruits and veggies fresh for as long as possible.
Some Vegetables and Fruits Need a Low Level of Humidity
If you look closely at your humidity drawers, you’ll see an adjustable gauge. It’s usually a simple little lever you can slide from high to low. Adjusting it to low means you want an atmosphere of low humidity in the drawer.
Produce that needs to be stored in a drawer with low humidity:
- Apples
- Pears
- Kiwi melons
- Bell peppers
- Cantaloupes
The low humidity keeps these items in good condition for an extended time.
Some Vegetables and Fruits Need to Be in High Humidity
Dark, leafy vegetables do best in a moist atmosphere. High humidity prevents their leaves from wilting too quickly.
Examples of vegetables and fruits to keep in high humidity:
- Broccoli
- Brussel sprouts
- Carrots
- Cauliflower
- Cucumbers
- Spinach
- Strawberries
- Watermelon
Some Fruits and Veggies Don’t Want to Be Cold!
The following are all examples of items to keep out of the cold:
- Bananas
- Pineapples
- Eggplants
- Tomatoes
- Avocados
- Potatoes
- Mangoes
Help Your Humidity Drawers Do Their Job
Putting your leafy vegetables in a drawer with high humidity is the first step to helping them maintain their freshness. You can help your high humidity drawer to be more effective by putting your spinach, lettuce, kale and other leafy veggies in a container with a cloth or paper towel at the bottom. The towel absorbs moisture preventing premature wilting.
Clean Your Humidity Drawers Once a Week
It’s a good idea to remove your humidity drawers and clean them with hot water and mild soap. Excess moisture can pool on the bottom of the drawers along with scraps of old vegetables and fruits. You want to remove any opportunity for bacteria to grow.
Our experienced team of housekeeping professionals at Fabulously Clean can help you maintain the cleanliness of your refrigerator. One of the a la carte items on our list of affordable services is cleaning the inside of your refrigerator. Call our friendly offices today at (208) 608-4648 and tell us what else we can do to make your residence one of the many happy homes visited by the Fabulously Clean team in the Treasure Valley area.