If you purchase fruits and vegetables from the grocery store or local farmer’s market, it’s always a great idea to clean them before feeding them to your family. Regardless of whether or not you are eating the outside of the fruit or vegetable, bacertia can be sitting on the outside and can be transferred to hands or to the edible parts of the fruit or vegetable when peeling or cutting.
Fruit and Veggie Wash can be purchased at most grocery stores, but it can be a little pricey. I have found a DIY Fruit & Vegetable Cleaning Wash that works great and for a fraction of the price!
Hard-skinned Fruits and Vegetables are best cleaned with a spray. Just fill a spray bottle with one part white vinegar and three part water. Spray directly on your fruit and vegetables, rub in with a clean, dry cloth and then rinse.
You even want to wash vegetables that you are going to peel like potatoes or carrots. It is possible that bacteria can be transfered to the edible areas of the vegetable with the knife or peeler. Fruits with rinds like oranges should also be washed just so any bacteria on the rind is not transfered to your hands when you peel it and then eat the inside.
Soft-skinned Fruits and Vegetables need a little more care. Using the same solution, fill a bowl. Let the fruits or vegetables soak for a couple minutes and then rinse. Leafy vegetables may need to soak a little bit longer. Then allow to drain and soak again if needed.
Vinegar contains acetic acid which kills any bacteria that sits on the outside of your fruits and vegetables. It will also work to dissolve any pesticide residue that can be left on the skin of fruits and vegetables. Both of these reasons make it a safe and natural way to clean your fruit and vegetables.
