Why you should give your fruit a bath

I enjoy eating fruit at this time of year.

Ripe peaches, juicy cherries and sweet strawberries are my favourites.

Yet I’m not sure I wash them properly. If I’m having an apple, I might polish it on my pants. I’ll quickly rinse strawberries in water, but sometimes I’ll eat them straight from their plastic container.

Isn’t that clean enough to eat. Aren’t germs important for building up your immunity after all? My mom would say NO.

There are fruit wash sprays you can buy at health food stores to remove pesticides from fruit and vegetables. My mom prefers to go au natural.

She insists that berries be cleaned with a vinegar bath. Not only does it remove pesticides, it also keeps berries fresher in the fridge for longer. (I hate when they get mouldy!)

Here’s how she does it: She gets a big bowl, adds a splash of vinegar (less than 1/4 cup), fills the bowl with water and swishes it around to combine. Then she lets the berries sit in the bath for no more than five minutes. She rinses them off with water and lays the berries on paper towel to air dry. Once they’re dry, she lines a bowl with dry paper towel and puts the berries inside.

With other fruit, such as apples, my mom uses a mister with vinegar and water to remove the waxy pesticide feel.

I should probably listen to my mom. It definitely couldn’t hurt.

Do you have any tips for cleaning fruit and keeping it fresher longer?