Although we think it’s obvious, then, how we store at home foods, directly affects their freshness and preservation of useful properties. So if bringing home the shopping bags we mindlessly put the products in the cupboards and the shelves, we run the risk of shortening their shelf life, which is only under optimal storage conditions would be consistent with the labeling.
It’s important to keep the kitchen in order, particularly examining the purchase on returning home. A nutritionist from the nutrition center “Alimmenta” Marisa Burgos explains that when products placed in the freezer, fridge or cupboard, you must use the same rule: “that we put before, should be the first, than we use”. For this reason, only the purchased products should be put into the shelves, products that were previously purchased, or whose shelf life will soon be over, so we first used the “older” products.
Ana Amengual of the Barcelona food centre “Júlia Farré” warns that examining the packages, it is important to first put in the freezer of frozen foods, “in order to avoid possible discontinuities in the cold chain”.
To place the products in groups
Immediately after that we turn to products that can be stored in a closet. The dietician recommends you to group products according to their type. “For example, we can distinguish the following categories: cereals, nuts and dried fruits, flour, pasta and cereals, canned fish, snacks, canned vegetables and finally, sauce and other condiments” — lists Ana Amengual.
In addition, to avoid clutter on the shelves, she recommends placing them in boxes or trays with the special tags, because these will help ensure that “all family members use this system and return the products in their place”.
Marisa Burgos notes that there are two options for storage of products: we can move the product in a transparent container with a lid or store the product in its original packaging. She believes that “the packaging of these products intended for storage over a long period of time and contains all the necessary information about its proper use, origin and shelf life”. Therefore we can not give up the original packaging of the product, especially if it is transparent and allows us to see how much product is left. “For integrity of the packaging you can use the special clamps, which is very convenient to use,” she adds.
Do I need to shift the containers of pasta and beans?
If you still prefer to shift products (e.g., beans, pasta or nuts) to other containers, nutritionist “Alimmenta” recommends that you select for this transparent jars with caps that allow more efficient use of space pantry. “If the banks are made of glass, the best material for storage, they can pretty much weigh, so you need to avoid odds on the shelf,” she warns.
Both specialists recommended to keep food away from sunlight. So Ana Amengual advised to keep the products on the shelves behind closed doors to keep them from “heat of the kitchen”. Marisa Burgos warns that prolonged exposure to sunlight to food can affect “as its microbiological safety and organoleptic properties,” and adds that “even a contained in these fats can purchase rancid taste.”
Monthly review of inventory
Finally, Ana Amengual shares with us two tips that will help us extend the shelf life of products. First of all, she advises to get rid of those products that we are not going there. “If much time has passed since then, as you have something to put on the shelf, but in this case you never have used, and the product simply takes the place, get rid of it. Have it ready, give, donate or just throw away,” says the expert. Moreover, she advises to do all the cleaning of closets every two weeks or a month, in addition to “wash the surface of the shelves and doors”.
“Because these products are stored at room temperature, not in a hurry to put them on the shelves. Before that go through the shelf and get rid of products that you do not use. After that you can make from these products menu for the week. Thus, you need to use already purchased products and will not buy them in vain,” says the dietitian center “Júlia Farré”.
