Living Vegan For Dummies - Alexandra Jamieson [51]
Storing Your Goods to Ensure Freshness
Proper storage of whole foods, seasonings, and herbs is important to ensure that they stay fresh as long as possible. After all, transforming and bulking up your kitchen with vegan products can be expensive — you don’t want to lose any ingredients to moisture, pests, damaging light, or heat. Instead of leaving open bags of food in your cupboard, which can invite pests and moisture-causing mold, store packages in sealable bags or airtight containers. This section provides you with an overview of how to store your new vegan ingredients appropriately.
How to store your food depends on the type of food it is. Consider the following guidelines:
Dry grains and legumes should be kept in a cool, dark, and dry place. Dried beans can keep for more than 20 years when stored properly! Keep beans and grains in well-sealed containers away from light and heat. A dark basement is an excellent storage place. Just be sure to keep all food containers at least a few inches off the ground to prevent moisture and rodent problems.
Shelled nuts and seeds keep for up to a year if stored in well-sealed containers in the freezer.
Whole-grain products such as breads and crackers come without suspicious preservatives and shelf-stabilizing additives (see the later section “Decoding food label lingo” for more information). However, that means they’re more likely to mold. Storing these products in the refrigerator or freezer helps them last longer.
I especially like to keep my Ezekiel sprouted, whole-grain, and multigrain breads in the freezer. Then when I need a piece of toast or a “cheese” sandwich, I simply pop them in the toaster and they’re good to go.
Most fresh fruits and vegetables fare best in the crisper drawer of your fridge. Exceptions are bananas, stone fruits like peaches, and tomatoes, which lose flavor in the fridge. Strawberries keep longer when refrigerated, but they taste better when allowed to warm up to room temperature before you eat them. To ripen avocados, leave them on the counter. But after you mash them into guacamole, press plastic wrap or a glass bowl onto the surface of the guac to prevent browning and refrigerate. Store apples in the fridge to keep them cold and make them taste sweeter.
Potatoes, onions, ginger, and garlic are fickle, but when stored properly, they stay fresh for a long time. Store garlic heads in a cool, dark place to prevent sprouting. I keep mine in the silverware drawer. Potatoes and onions should be kept separate from each other in a cool, dark place to reduce contact spoiling, and don’t leave them in the plastic bags they come in. Also, don’t eat potatoes that have “gone green” under the skin. Fresh ginger keeps best in the butter section of your fridge.
Dry seasonings like herbs and spices typically keep for six months after opening, so buy them in small quantities. Store them in sealed containers in a dark cabinet or drawer away from the heat and moisture of the stove. You often can buy dry seasonings more cheaply, and in whatever quantity you like, in bulk from health food stores.
Keep a permanent marker in your spice cabinet and write the date on the jar whenever you open a new spice.
Fresh herbs should be stored in plastic storage bags or other sealable containers in a 40- to 45-degree crisper. Don’t wash them until you’re ready to use them, because moisture promotes spoilage. Several varieties can be kept in separate bags or wrapped in dry, clean cloths or paper towels. When it’s time to use them, wash the herbs and dry them completely; they’re much easier to chop when dry.
Shopping Savvy
Shopping for your healthy vegan foods will be a little different from your old grocery routine. You have many sources to explore, and you’ll be surprised at how many good options you have available to you. Even your old supermarket will offer great choices; you just need to