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How to Keep Strawberries Fresh

frugal· Grocery

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15 Mar
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Two boxes of strawberries on a counter with a container of vinegar

Do you struggle with figuring out how to keep your strawberries fresh? Here’s a method to make them last longer to avoid food waste!

Have you ever bought a pack of strawberries only to find that 2 days later, most of them are squishy and starting to turn white?

It’s so gross, and such a waste of money. It’s one of the reasons I never wanted to buy fresh produce because it just went bad so quickly.

After doing some research, I found a way to keep strawberries fresh that works for me, and makes the strawberries last at least a week.

A bowl of strawberries soaking in water and vinegar

Do you need to wash strawberries before eating?

According to this article from Healthline, washing any produce before eating is a good idea. Other hands have touched your food before you, and who knows if those hands were clean.

Gross to think about, I know.

Healthline actually recommends just using water and gentle rubbing, but I prefer to use a water and vinegar soak just because I think it works.

But yes, definitely wash your strawberries before eating, dipping in chocolate, or making jam.

Do you wash strawberries before or after cutting them?

I wash my strawberries before cutting. Since they’re sitting in a vinegar soak, I figured it was easier to just throw everything in.

Plus, then I’ll know I won’t have dirty strawberries on my cutting board when I cut the stems off!

Strawberries drying on a kitchen towel

How to keep strawberries fresh

Washing strawberries with vinegar

Here’s what you need to wash strawberries to make them last longer:

  • Strawberries (1 pound or more)
  • A large bowl
  • Water
  • Vinegar
  • Colander
  • A food storage container like these Rubbermaid ones– A 5-cup container typically holds 1 pound
Strawberries soaking in a bowl of vinegar and water

First, fill the bowl with a 10:1 ratio water to vinegar. So if you use 1 cup of vinegar, put in 10 cups of water; I usually just eyeball it and it turns out fine.

Add the strawberries, making sure they’re mostly covered by the water, and let them sit for about 10 minutes.

Strawberries drying on a kitchen towel

Pour the strawberries into the colander, rinsing off the excess vinegar, then place them on the towel on your kitchen counter, spacing them apart so they dry faster.

In my experience, putting wet strawberries in the fridge seems to make them go bad faster.

I let them sit for a couple hours, gently patting them dry when I’m ready to put them away. I put them in a regular Rubbermaid storage container with the lid tightly sealed.

Strawberries in a food container

How long do strawberries last in the fridge?

Doing all this, I’ve found my strawberries to last all week in the fridge (if we don’t eat them all by then), which is awesome.

It cuts back on waste, which saves us money, and I hate essentially throwing away money.

I do the same thing with blueberries too, and they seem to last just about as long as strawberries.

What can be made from strawberries?

If you find yourself with way too many strawberries (Easy to do in Summer), you can make some of these super easy recipes:

  • Strawberries and Cream Stacked Pancakes
  • Smoothies (Slice strawberries in half and freeze so you don’t have to use ice!)
  • No Bake Strawberry Cheesecakes
  • Top yogurt or oatmeal with strawberries
  • Strawberry Bread

Do you use this method of cleaning, or do you do something different? Let me know what works for you!

Continue to Content
How to Keep Strawberries Fresh

How to Keep Strawberries Fresh

Prep Time: 2 minutes
Active Time: 2 minutes
Additional Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 14 minutes

Want to make your strawberries last longer? Here's a quick tip to keep your strawberries fresh for up to a week!

Materials

  • 1 pound strawberries (Or more)
  • Large bowl
  • White distilled vinegar
  • Water
  • Colander
  • Medium-sized kitchen towel
  • Food storage container (Ideally a 3-cup container)

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, pour a 1:10 mixture of vinegar and water. I usually eyeball this.
  2. Place strawberries in the bowl, making sure they're covered by the water, and set a timer for 10 minutes.
  3. Drain the strawberries into a colander and rinse, then gently transfer to a kitchen towel on the counter, letting them dry for up to an hour.
  4. Place strawberries in a tightly-sealed food storage container and keep in the fridge for up to a week.
© Jaime Bacon

S

4 Comments

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Comments

  1. Stephanie says

    March 9, 2017 at 8:31 am

    Thank you for this tip! Kroger has strawberries on sale for 4/$5 so we grab 4 and I was worried about them going bad. I’ll clean what we have left and hopefully they stay fresh longer.

    Reply
  2. Sandi says

    September 16, 2019 at 11:00 pm

    I put my strawberries in a glass jar (large) unwased,and they last at least a couple of weeks.

    Reply
    • Jaime says

      September 17, 2019 at 4:23 am

      Oh, nice!! I’ll have to try that!

      Reply
    • Beth says

      December 27, 2020 at 10:30 pm

      Do you put the jar in the fridge or leave it out on the counter?

      Reply

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