Healthy food is not a luxury but rather a must for keeping the human body healthy. Unlike expensive clothes, jewellery or other extravagances we splurge on, the nourishment of our body with the healthiest, purest food is paramount. It’s not always easy to be thoughtful about what we eat but the extra effort is warranted by the benefits to the human body. You are what you eat and how you store your food really will impact your health.
It’s essential to store the food in the best way possible, prolonging the life quality and freshness of the produce.
1. Organize your pantry, fridge and freezer. After the food is delivered home, make sure to arrange it with the idea of first in first out. Use up the older food before you use the new purchase. Make sure it’s arranged in a way which will get you access to older items first. Also, make sure to consume them before they lose their bloom. If produce looks good but you won’t have a chance to eat it then then cook it and freeze it or just put it in the freezer for future consumption. Bacteria, yeast and mould spoil vegetable and fruits, as well as dairy and meat. Before the enzymes in the food cause over-ripening and deterioration, we must subject them to as little exposure to air and light. Keep them cool and be aware of the spoilage caused by leaving them out.
2. Cleanliness: Your containers must be impeccably clean and have a hermetic seal to prevent bacterial growth in them. Freezer storage requires strong and air-free containers, to prevent freezer burn.
3. Make sure to keep insects and rodents out! Pests love flours, cereals, dried fruit, candy, nuts and grains. Check your pantry every two months to ensure that they have not come to pay you a friendly visit.
4. Foods must be smelled before served. If they emit an off-putting odour, discard them as they may be toxic.
5. When preparing food for storage, clean your hands often with bacterial soap, wash counters and surfaces, knives and utensils in a mild water/peroxide mix. Use disposable paper towels rather than rags, which carry and spread bacteria in them, unless washed in hot water after each use. Sponges carry a huge amount of bacteria and should be discarded after every few uses.
6. Lots of foods have no expiration date on them. The visual examination of the greens and the fragrance of meat may be the only indicator one has. Generally, the fresher the food, the longer it’s shelf time. Pick wisely and pay attention.
7. If a food has no expiration or "sell by date", mark the package as soon as get its home. A sticky label and ink marker in the kitchen drawer will make this easy and convenient.
8. When keeping foods in the pantry such as cereals, quinoa grains and the like, it’s smart to use a glass or plastic container with a strong seal, to prevent humidity and the invasion of an insect colony into your food.
9. The most easily wasted food is fresh green leafy vegetables. Moisture is their greatest enemy and to combat that, open the plastic clamshell, place paper towels over the salad, close the lid and turn it over, topside down. This will extend the life and crisp freshness of the produce.
Now, you can just lay back and enjoy the fruits of your labour, and the cash, which would have been discarded as rotten garbage, is about to become in time enough to reward yourself with an expensive treat.