Getting ready to bake that apple pie for Thanksgiving dinner? Make sure the apples are clean! Until today, we washed all of our fruits and veggies as well as we knew how: by running tap water over them and scrubbing until it looked clean enough to eat. But the point of washing a piece of fruit or vegetable is to rid it of any germs that might be lurking on it surface, whether it's organic or conventionally-grown.
You're washing off residual pesticides, something from the conveyer belt at the grocery store, or germs hiding on your countertops.
We found a solution: here's a super-easy green way to wash your fresh produce.
To really get that produce clean, spritz with white or apple cider vinegar, then with regular 3% hydrogen peroxide. Then, rinse with water. This method works great for countertops and cutting boards, too!
We tried it this morning on an apple, and there was no aftertaste lingering on the fruit (and believe us, we tried to taste it). According to Green Living from the Environmental Magazine, tests found that misting produce with vinegar and hydrogen peroxide killed virtually all salmonella, shigella, and E. coli bacteria, making it even more effective than chlorine bleach!
We love any solution that will keep the chemicals out of the house, and especially out of the kitchen.
Image: Faith Durand for The Kitchn
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Sorry to say it...but this idea is absurd and NOT super-easy! I grew up eating produce washed with good old tap water and I'm healthy and happy. Why does everyone have to complicate life even more?
view Monica's profile
RE: Monica... I can understand that! Like I said, I grew up washing my fruits under the tap and I'm just fine and healthy too. :) But if anything, the solution might be good for cutting boards and countertops.
view amber77's profile
given the cider thing isn't all that convenient, I have father who works in produce and would NEVER let us just eat a piece of fruit without washing it.
sure we have some immunity to germs, but if you saw how many people touch the fruit daily and drop it off the displays onto the ground, you'd be a little more careful about what you put in your mouth.
I've also heard it is important to wash produce, not only because of pesticide residue, but because of fecal matter from animals and workers in the field it is grown.
apple cider peace of mind = yes please
view jmbylin's profile
I think this solution might be practical for boards and stuff, but it is absurd for fruit and vegetables : if it can't be washed with water, it's probably not good to eat.
view carrefour_ny's profile
I use baking soda for practically everything, including
washing my fruits and vegetables.
I always have one of those shake-containers handy and
can use a brush or even my hands.
It doesn't have the antiseptic properties, but it's a healthy
(and edible) scrub.
view margaretanne's profile
I agree that if you knew what was actually on that fruit you'd probably be a little grossed out. That said, we have immune systems for a reason. Most people touch tons of things during the day that are equally gross, and i'm pretty sure no one washes their hands before putting ANYTHING in their mouths (for example, if someone at work offered you a cookie, would you run to the bathroom first, or just grab a cookie off the tray and put it in your mouth?).
view mh330's profile
My concern is not everyday germs from too many people touching it. We always use the "10 second" rule for stuff on the floor... gross, but we're surviving pretty well. My concern is pesticides. Can any amount of washing of the skin of a fruit, whether it's apple or pineapple, get the pesticides gone? Wouldn't pesticides travel thru to the fruit inside the peel? Anyone know? Thank you!
view Saratica's profile
I don't have any hydro peroxide in my house. So should I go and buy another container made out of plastic to wash produce when water has always worked fine for me and never made me sick? Right.
view graciela's profile
To all of those who say tap water has always worked for them, I say that tap water will work for you until it doesn't. If you read the news you know that people end up very ill or much, much worse when produce is contaminated by e coli or other bugs. I'm sure those people used tap water with no ill effects for *years* before they landed in the hospital.
view flywheel's profile