# Berry Care



## PrincessFiona60 (Mar 3, 2012)

Received this in e-mail...

The key to preventing moldy              berries...





 
Berries are delicious, but              they're also kind of delicate.  Raspberries in particular seem              like they can mold before you even get them home from the              market.  There's nothing more tragic than paying $4 for a pint              of local raspberries, only to look in the fridge the next day and              find that fuzzy mold growing on their insides.

Well, with fresh berries              just starting to hit farmers markets, we can tell you that how to              keep them fresh!  Here’s a tip I’m sharing on how to               prevent them from getting there in the first place: 

 Wash              them with vinegar.​ 
When you get your berries              home, prepare a mixture of one part vinegar (white or apple cider              probably work best) and ten parts water.  Dump the berries into              the mixture and swirl around. Drain, rinse if you want (though the              mixture is so diluted you can't taste the vinegar,) and pop in the              fridge.  The vinegar kills any mold spores and other bacteria              that might be on the surface of the fruit, and voila!               Raspberries will last a week or more, and strawberries go almost two              weeks without getting moldy and soft.  So go forth and stock up              on those pricey little gems, knowing they'll stay fresh as long as              it takes you to eat them. 

You're so berry welcome!


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## Addie (Mar 3, 2012)

Who'da thunk it! I usually eat them as soon as I get the home.


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## DampCharcoal (Mar 3, 2012)

That's good info, thank you!

I work outside and during the blazing heat of summer I keep a cooler filled with ice chilled fruit to snack on. Berries can get VERY expensive.


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## taxlady (Mar 3, 2012)

The raspberries may go a week without getting mouldy, but as far as I'm concerned, by the time they got to the market they have lost too much of their flavour. When I buy raspberries, I always buy the frozen ones.

Raspberries are best within an hour of picking and degrade noticeably, very quickly. They still taste good, but they have lost that something special.


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## tinlizzie (Mar 3, 2012)

Thanks for sharing the tip.  Strawberries are still "in" down here and I have to persevere to get the whole container eaten before they begin to go south.  (What a strange expression.)


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## FluffyAngel (Mar 19, 2012)

Thanks for the tip. I will be doing a lot of Berry delicious work soon & I'd like it to last.


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## Addie (Mar 19, 2012)

Rasberries, blackberries and strawberries have that little indentation at the top. Remember to put them upsdie down when you are drying them so the water drains off of them completly.


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