How to keep bananas yellow and firm for 20 days

Bananas are often placed in beautiful vases with other fruits. It looks great, but in reality, the idea is not so good. In such company, bananas will turn black and spoil within a few days.

The Express writes: "If you want fruit to stay fresh for longer, you should think about more practical storage methods." Food hygiene expert from High Speed Training, Tash Blythe, shared some useful tips on this topic. Here's what she thinks you should do to keep bananas yellow and firm for as long as possible.

Tash said: "A potentially obvious, but often overlooked, life hack for keeping bananas fresh is to buy them green and let them ripen at home. If you buy bright yellow bananas in the store, it means that they are already ripe and have a shorter shelf life than those that are not yet ripe."

She also noted that ripe bananas should not be stored in plastic bags, as this will accelerate their ripening. Like many fruits, bananas emit ethylene gas, and if they remain in a sealed bag, this gas accumulates and the ripening process is faster

In this regard, the expert recommends: "Store bananas on the countertop or somewhere else, at room temperature, away from moisture, sunlight and too high temperatures."

"In a place that is too warm, ripening will accelerate, so don't keep them near ovens or warm appliances."

Separating the bananas from each other will also help them keep their "shape" as much as possible, as the effect of ethylene gas on the fruit will be reduced.

"Ethylene gas is released from the banana stem, so to slow down its effects and avoid over-ripening too quickly, you can also wrap the stems in plastic wrap or cling film," advises Tash.

If you don't want to separate the bananas into pieces, you can purchase a device known as a "banana hanger". And when your fruit is ripe on it, put it in the fridge to keep it longer.

Tash recommends buying green bananas, which turn yellow after about three to four days, and then, if you don't use them, wrap them in cling film and put them in the fridge. They can last up to 20 days this way.

She added: "Don't be alarmed by a brown or overripe banana peel, as the fruit inside will remain fresh."