Prolonging the Life of Bananas

Would you like to keep bananas from turning brown so fast once you bring them home from the store?

To make bananas last longer, store them in a cool, dark place, ideally around 54°F. Keep bananas a couple of days longer by storing them in the refrigerator after they've reached the desired degree of ripeness stored at room temperature. The outside will turn brown, but they will still be light-colored on the inside as shown in the photo below:

Other tips for keeping bananas longer:

• Wrap the stems with plastic wrap or foil to prevent ethylene gas from speeding up ripening.
• Ethylene gas released by bananas can cause other fruits to ripen quickly. Keep bananas separate from other ethylene-producing fruits like apples and avocados.
• Hanging bananas can help them ripen more evenly and prevent bruising.
• Avoid storing bananas in a plastic bag, as this can trap moisture and ethylene gas, leading to faster ripening and potential spoilage.
• Buy bananas in varying degrees of ripeness so they don't all ripen at the same time
   

Frozen banana slices work well in all types of smoothies and add extra thickness to the smoothie. One of the easiest ways to freeze banana slices is to:

1. Gently rub bananas under cool running water and peel.
2. Cut bananas into about ½ inches slices.
3. Lay the slices in a single layer on a parchment- or plastic wrap-lined baking sheet (make sure the baking sheet fits in your freezer first!)
4. Freeze for a couple of hours until the bananas are frozen solid. They will not darken during this time.
5. Remove from baking sheet and place in freezer bags. Return to freezer.