How to Store and Ripen Bananas
Just how long do bananas last? The answer to that, like any regarding food storage, is complicated and can vary depending on the conditions in which they’re stored. To get them flawlessly ripe, you’ll need to know how to store bananas. To start you want to place them in a dry area. If stored correctly, you’ll have ripe bananas in 2 to 5 days.
If you’re curious about how to keep bananas fresh for longer, you should know about how to store bananas in your refrigerator. If you place them in the refrigerator, fully ripe bananas will last 5 to 7 days. It’s also important to note that though they will be ripe over that period of time, it is common to see some gradual black spotting.
When you know how to store bananas, you’ll give yourself a bigger window to finally make that banana bread you’ve been thinking of baking.
How to Freeze Bananas
Let’s talk about freezing bananas. If you’re planning a potassium-packed smoothie routine, then you’ll need to know how to keep bananas fresh longer. And the best way to do that is by storing them in the freezer. So let’s break down the process of how to freeze bananas.
How to store bananas in the freezer is simple and easy. First, and most obviously, peel your ripe bananas. Then, cut them into ½ –¼ inch rounds. Once you finish, line a baking sheet covered with parchment paper with your banana slices and flash freeze the slices for around two hours. Finally, remove the slices from the freezer and place them into a sealable plastic bag like Glad® FLEX'N SEAL™. If done correctly, you’ll have ripe bananas for 2 to 3 months and will stay good for use when stored in the freezer over the long term. And that is how to freeze bananas. It’s so easy that it makes food storage seem easier than … peeling a banana.
How to Thaw Bananas
So you learned all about how to freeze bananas and now you have enough Glad® FLEX'N SEAL™ plastic bags full of bananas to feed ten families. But how do you defrost all that fruit without turning it into a bunch of mush?
One way you can do this is by simply removing the ripe bananas from your plastic freezer bags and allowing them to naturally thaw in a bowl.
If you’re trying to defrost your bananas a little faster, keep the bananas in your Glad® FLEX'N SEAL™ bags. Submerge the bag in cool water, which will act as a natural heater. The plastic bags will help preserve the flavor texture of the bananas. Check the bananas and change the water every so often until adequately defrosted.
Whichever method you chose, make sure you know that the USDA recommends not leaving cut bananas out in temperatures above 40°F for more than 2 hours. But yours are thawed you’ll be on your way to a delicious world of bananas.
