Happen to have too many bananas and are not sure what to do with them yet? This article will help you out when it comes to ripening and storage.
Bananas can last longer in the fridge. The cold temperature of the fridge will help slow the ripening of the bananas. However, you have to make sure that the bananas are ripe before you put them in the refrigerator, otherwise, they will change in texture and quality.
Can you store them overnight and how long will they last? Find out the answers below!
Do Bananas Last Longer in the Fridge?
Bananas will last longer in the fridge compared to if they were left to ripen outside.
Bananas are best left stored at room temperature if you were to ripen them or let them ripen naturally by themselves. If you buy bananas ripe, storing them in the fridge will make them last a couple of days longer. Others report that theirs lasted a week.
The skin will turn a brownish shade, but the inside will still have a light color (source: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension).
Storing them in the fridge will save you money and you’ll make the best out of your bananas. Moreover, if you intended to eat your bananas but somehow forgot to, you can still repurpose them and make them into a banana cake, banana bread, cupcakes, banoffee pie, and the like!
With all these said, you can only put bananas in the fridge provided they have ripened. This will be discussed more in the following sections.
Can You Put Bananas in the Fridge Overnight?
You can store your bananas in the refrigerator overnight but only if they have ripened. Doing this will delay the ripening process. But this technique is particularly helpful if you want your bananas the way they are before you use them.
Storing the bananas the night before using them will keep them close to how they were, as far as ripeness, before storing them. So, if you have bananas and want them to stay the same or not turn too ripe for your recipe, you can store them in the fridge overnight.
Do Bananas Stop Ripening in the Refrigerator?
Bananas will slow down ripening if they are stored in the refrigerator and not in a good way.
Bananas produce moderate amounts of ethylene gas (source: Science Focus). This is how they ripen (source: The Pioneer Woman). Moreover, any fruit that sits beside or close to a banana will ripen faster as well.
Storing bananas in the fridge will slow the ripening process. This is actually not recommended by many experts as putting bananas in a cold environment will change their normal ripening process (source: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health).
Bananas are tropical fruit. They grow in hot to warm places. The best way to ripen them is to store them at room temperature.
In addition, the best time to store them in the fridge is if they are already ripe, otherwise, they will not ripen the right way, or even get damaged in the process (source: UC Davis Postharvest Technology).
Are you curious about the best way to store bananas? Whether it’s better to keep bananas in the fridge or on the counter? If you’re interested in learning more about the pros and cons of each storage method and which one is best for keeping bananas fresh, dive into my guide that provides valuable insights on this subject.
Do Green Bananas Ripen in the Fridge?
Green bananas will not ripen in the fridge. In fact, they will remain the same but probably not for long. This is because the cold temperature of the fridge will slow down the ripening process of the banana.
As discussed above, it is recommended to store bananas in the fridge only after they’ve ripened, or else, their texture will change and the cold temperature might even cause damage to the bananas.
If you put bananas in the fridge while they’re still green and unripe, the skin will turn black but the meat of the banana won’t fully ripen (source: Foods Guy).
While the topic of storing bananas in the fridge has sparked debates, there are compelling reasons why refrigeration may not be the best option. Read more about the reasons why you shouldn’t put bananas in the fridge in our article here.
If you have a lot of bananas and want to extend their shelf life, you should let them ripen at room temperature first if they aren’t already ripe, before putting them in the fridge. May this article help as a guide!
