Bananas are the deliciously sweet fruit that are ideal for snacking, but while they may be tasty they do turn bad frustratingly quickly. If you buy a whole bunch of bananas at the supermarket, you’ll probably find that one or two have turned brown and mushy before you’ve even had a chance to eat them.
The fruit typically ripens in one to seven days at room temperature, but it depends on how ripe the bananas are when you buy them. Bananas that are yellow already are pretty much at the peak of ripeness and ready to eat straight away, so storage can be tricky to keep them fresh. But according to food experts, wrapping the stems of bananas in cling film helps keep the fruit fresh and yellow for longer, before they start turning brown.
Bananas release a gas called ethylene which is a natural hormone that causes fruit to ripen, triggering changes like softening, colour development and the release of aromas.
But by wrapping the stems in cling film, some believe this essentially traps the gas and slows down the ripening process, preventing bananas from turning brown too quickly. As such, it allows you to keep them fresher for longer and effectively extends their shelf life so they don’t go to waste.
Food experts at Allrecipes explain: “No matter what, the best thing to do to keep bananas fresh longer is to wrap the stems in plastic.
“The stems produce the ethylene gas that ripens the fruit (and anything around it). The plastic will act as a barrier to contain the gas and extend the longevity of the fruit.
“You can use a bag, wrapped around and secured with something like a rubber band, but it’s best to try a little plastic wrap.”
If you don’t have any cling foil then beeswax wraps or tin foil will also work just as well. It’s also worth storing your bananas away from other fruit once you’ve wrapped the stems as the ethylene gas can cause nearby fruits to ripen more quickly, meaning they will spoil faster.
Many fruits respond to the ethylene gas released by bananas, including apples, pears, and passion fruit, but citrus fruits like oranges and lemons are unaffected.
To avoid spoiling other fruits, experts recommend hanging your bananas up on a banana hook on a kitchen worktop as this not only keeps them separate, but it also prevents bruising.