How to prevent Moldy Berries

 This was sent to us in an email by a friend of DIT.

We don't know who provided the information in the email but it does seem to be 'chemically correct' so we thought you would like to know how to make your berries last longer.

So, with that by way of explanation, here is the "how to" information":

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... 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!         : )

And as an 'editor's note'.... we at DIT suspect this will also work with most fruit.