Tera Warner

Top 5 Ways to Clean Your Produce

by | 1 comment

clean produce434x289

Top 5 Ways To Clean Your Produce

by Carissa Leventis-Cox

My mother is Mrs. Clean and she is worried about the parasites and other undesirable microorganisms in the raw foods that we eat.  So to ease her mind, this post is for my Mama and for all you Mamas out there who want clean and non-toxic food for your family!

Me: Yes, I do clean my veggies!
My mother: How?

WATER IS BETTER THAN COMMERCIAL WASH TREATMENTS

The University of Maine conducted a study on cleaning produce with:

1. distilled water and

three kinds of commercial wash treatments

2. Fit®

3. Ozone Water Purifier XT-301 and

4. J0-4 Multi-Functional Food Sterilizer).

They found that distilled water cleaned just as well or better than commercial wash treatments.

SCRUB BRUSHING and VINEGAR SOLUTION IS BETTER THAN WATER

Cook’s Illustrated conducted a study on apples and pears cleaning them with:veggies262x175

1. soap (not recommended at all because it leaves a residue)

2. vinegar solution

3. scrub brush and

4. simply water.

They found 2 solutions that cleaned better than just water: scrub brushing removed 85% of the bacteria and diluted vinegar removed 98% of the bacteriaThe Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, found that cleaning an apple by dipping in the vinegar solution and rubbing for 5 seconds reduced salmonella bacteria significantly.

How To Clean With Vinegar

1. SOAK PRODUCE for a few minutes up to 15 minutes in vinegar solution (1 part vinegar to 3 parts water) and rinse with water.

2. SPRAY PRODUCE with same solution, leave for a few minutes and rinse with water.

NOTE: Vinegar can be white or apple cider vinegar and can be substituted with lemon or lime juices.  Some produce, like mushrooms, strawberries and peaches, cannot be soaked for long periods.

FULL STRENGTH VINEGAR AND HYDROGEN PEROXIDE IS THE BEST

Susan Sumner, a food scientist at Virginia at Polytechnic Institute and State University, in Blacksburg, discovered an easy yet effective method of cleaning produce by spraying them first with vinegar, then with hydrogen peroxide, or vice versa.  She told Science News Online, “If the acetic acid [vinegar] got rid of 100 organisms, the hydrogen peroxide would get rid of 10,000, and the two together would get rid of 100,000.” Apparently, this method was found to be more effective than chlorine and other commercial products.

How To Clean With Vinegar and Hydrogen Peroxide

1. Fill a clean bottle with full strength vinegar (white or apple cider).

2. Fill another clean bottle with full strength 3% hydrogen peroxide, which you can get at any grocery or drug store.

3. Spray produce with one, then the other.  It doesn’t really matter which you spray with first.

4. Rinse with water.                                                                                             veggiesone250x188

HOW ABOUT SALT?

If you don’t have distilled water, a scrub brush, vinegar or hydrogen peroxide?  Soak produce in a saline solution (1 tsp salt to 1 cup water or 1/2 cup salt to a basin full of water) for a few minutes  up to 15 minutes and rinse.

Carissa is a culinarian with cooking school, restaurant and catering backgrounds.  She is also a certified Ayurvedic Nutrition Therapist and co-author of Yoga for Cancer.  Her website Mama in the Kitchen, and She Ain’t Cookin’ contains tips, research and raw recipes that are easy (not complicated), quick (under 10 ingredients and 30 minutes of active work), and short (yeah more family time) for kids and parents to enjoy.

What do you think?

 

What  type of solutions do you use to clean your produce?  Do you always wash your greens before eating them?

Post your comments below!

beclean_banner_150x214

Our BE Clean Program Is Coming Up April 19th!  Join us to Restore Your Energy, Improve Your Health & Shoot Your Confidence Through the Roof  With A 30-Day Program To Clean & Green Your Home & Leave You Feeling Free of Trapped Energy and Muddled Thoughts!