Pesticides, molds, bacteria, viruses and other harmful substances
can cause health problems when we eat foods contaminated with them. Although the
food supply is generally safe when handled correctly at home, many organizations have sounded alarms about the cumulative effect of
these contaminants, especially on growing children.
Here's some hints for insuring safer produce:
Look for the freshest, unblemished fruits and vegetables.
Spoilage or blemishes encourage growth of bacteria and molds and makes the washing and
sorting process more difficult.
Don't fill the sink to wash produce. Most sinks have
germs in and around the drain or rim. Use a separate container such as a plastic
dishpan, which can be washed, dried and stored between uses.
Berries, grapes, tomatoes and other soft fruits and vegetables; spray
thoroughly with vegetable wash, and rinse
well under running cold water just before eating.
Scrub melons, hard squash and cantaloupes with a stiff vegetable brush under
running water, rinsing well before storage or cutting.
Spray with vegetable wash
and vigorously scrub all waxed vegetables and fruits such as apples, cucumbers and bell
peppers just before use. The wax can trap pesticides and molds, and certainly cannot
be good to eat. I wash under hot running water if I am going to use them
immediately, on the theory that hot water will melt and loosen more of the
wax. If you cannot remove all the wax, you are better off removing the peel.
Scrape carrots and parsnips. Scrub root vegetables such
as beets, turnips and potatoes before peeling or cooking. Wash oranges, lemons,
grapefruit and other citrus fruit well before juicing, peeling or cutting.
Machine harvesting of potatoes brings a poorer tuber to the
marketplace, often cut and bruised which promotes growth of a harmful mold. If you
want to bake or boil potatoes in their jackets (skins), select only the very best
unblemished potatoes; realize they'll cost a lot more. Otherwise, peeling is
preferable. Gray molds penetrate into the potato wherever there's a little blemish
or bruise; these must be cut out for safety, and you cannot see them under the skin until
you peel.
Discard the outer leaves of heads of lettuce, cabbage or other
clumped or headed leafy vegetables. Wash the rest thoroughly in running cold
water.
Endive, spinach, chard, collards, kale and other leafy greens benefit
from a three part washing process. Just before using, fill a container with cool
water and add some veggie detergent.
Put the greens to soak (just don't soak longer than necessary or you will lose
vitamins). Take each leaf out and pass it under running water. Trim if
necessary and put into a bowl. When all the greens are washed and trimmed, get a
fresh container of water and put the greens in to rinse a third time. This gets rid
of a maximum amount of pesticides, molds, germs, sand, bugs and worms. Even more can
be spun off in the residual water, if you use a salad spinner. Tupperware®
has a beautiful and very efficient one.
Cooking instructions tell you to wipe mushrooms with a dry
cloth. I don't buy it. They always have soil and organic material on them (guess
which end of an animal that organic material may have come from!). I wash mine
under running water just before use, removing soil with a soft brush, then drain and dry
with a paper towel.
Peel! Years ago, during World War II, government agencies in
the USA and Britain exhorted people not to peel, or to pare thinly, as "most of the
vitamins are just under the skin". That may have been a true belief at
the time, or just a sneaky effort to get people to stop wasting food. This old wives
tale, however, is untrue. The vitamin content is the same throughout most produce,
and the only thing most peels or skin provide is a little more fiber. If you
are concerned about your children's or family's total pesticide intake, peel their apples,
pears, peaches, tomatoes, squash, and any other fruit or vegetable that has one.
Actually, if you are having a difficult time getting your family to eat more veggies and
fruits, they may eat more if you remove the peels first (see eggplant).
When you freeze your own produce, wash and trim ahead of time.
Then blanch briefly in boiling water (don't do this to berries). This hot bath not
only helps removes additional pesticides and molds, but prevents growth of more, as well
as making a better frozen product. If you have a large garden with a lot of freezing
to do, change the hot water from time to time.
Remove stem and blossom ends or fruits and vegetables; they often
harbor molds and gather pesticides. Remove the hulls of strawberries before you wash
them. Remove cores of pears and apples for the same reason. Wash cherries,
stem them, then rinse again. Soft fruits should be hulled or washed just before you
serve them.
Remember to wash your own hands before and after you handle food.
Make it easy for yourself. Buy a good peeler One with a
handle shaped like a "Y", such as the one as sold by Tupperware®, is an excellent
choice; easy and fast to use. Invest in really good quality small paring knives as
well. Buy a vegetable wash concentrate
and use it. An assortment of small and large colanders and an
attractive salad spinner will also
encourage you to clean your produce adequately. Buy that plastic dishpan and
reserve it just for produce.
Be safe; carefully wash and trim your food. You owe it
to yourself and your family.
