Figuring out exactly where to store onions can be confusing. Perhaps you place yours in the vegetable drawer in your fridge. Maybe you keep them in a fruit bowl on the countertop or in a produce bag in the pantry. Well, now we're going to get to the bottom of where onions should actually be stored.
"Onions should be stored where it is dry, cool, and well ventilated," Isabel Maples, a nutritionist and registered dietitian with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, tells Hunker. "The pantry is better than the refrigerator."
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Video of the Day
Maples adds that onions also shouldn't be stored in bags or alongside potatoes, apples, or pears. "They'll absorb odors from those fruits," she explains.
When it comes to freshness and quality, the USDA's FoodKeeper App recommends that you consume pantry onions within one month from the date of purchase. If you have an excess of onions, you can keep them isolated in the fridge (so they won't absorb odors) for two months or freeze them for 10 to 12 months.
Interestingly, the USDA's recommendation changes for spring or green onions. In the pantry, they'll stay fresh for one month, but in the fridge, they've only got one week. If you freeze them, you'll get 10 to 12 months of freshness — just like with other onions.
We're off to make room in our pantries!