Bananas often go mushy and discoloured only a few days after being bought, meaning they need to be eaten quickly to prevent them from going in the bin.
However, there is a simple way to save money and cut down on food waste as it turns out most people are storing their bananas in the wrong place in the kitchen.
Camilla, a recipe developer and founder of FabFood4All has recently shared that bananas will stay yellow and fresh if stored in the fridge.
In a TikTok video, Camilla said: “It appears I may have been living a lie my entire life. I was always told that you can’t keep bananas in the fridge because they go black.
“Last week my daughter told me that all her university mates keep their bananas in the fridge so I kept these bananas in the fridge for four whole days once they [went] ripe.
“Normally by now they’d be completely black and covered in spots, so I’m going to open a banana to see if it’s true, can you keep a banana in the fridge without it going black.”
Camilla then opened the banana and was shocked to discover the fruit inside was fresh and perfectly ripe. She said: “You learn something new every day.”
In the comment section, Camilla said that storing bananas in the fridge “definitely extends their life” and added: “I can’t tell you how shocked I am.”
It is often a misconception that bananas cannot be stored in the fridge, but storing the fruit at a cold temperature will halt the ripening process completely to ensure they stay fresh.
Banana peels will stay yellow if only stored for a few days in the fridge but will eventually turn black when stored for longer, but will still be edible.
The fruit inside the black peel will remain yellow, fresh and firm. They will still be good to eat for roughly two weeks after being bought.
Make sure to only store yellow and ripened bananas in the fridge as green bananas will not be able to become yellow when stored in the cold.
Keeping bananas in the fridge tends to be better than keeping them in a fruit bowl as most fruits produce a growth hormone called ethylene gas, and when stored together the amount of ethylene gas being produced will cause fruits to begin spoiling at a quicker rate.
The fridge storage method separates bananas from other fruits which also extends their lifespan.
However, if you have no space in your fridge you can also try wrapping the stems in clingfilm, which can prevent the spread of ethylene gas and keep bananas fresher for longer.
