Walk into most American homes and you’ll find their refrigerators packed to the brim with everything imaginable. The notion that all food stays fresher longer when chilled has become so ingrained in our minds that we automatically toss nearly everything into those cool compartments. Yet this refrigerate-everything mentality might be doing more harm than good for many of your favorite ingredients.
The truth is, refrigeration can actually speed up the deterioration of certain foods, dulling their flavors, destroying their textures, or even triggering chemical changes that make them less nutritious. While it’s true that keeping your groceries cool prevents certain foods from wilting, spoiling, or making you sick from not-so-yummy microbial growth, it might surprise you to learn that some foods should not be refrigerated. While tossing them in there is typically safe, you’ll experience faster rot, or a deterioration in quality that just isn’t worth it.
Potatoes Turn Sweet and Gritty in Cold Storage
The added moisture from the fridge makes potatoes gritty and sweet. Store them in a ventilated container, such as a cardboard box or open paper bag, and out of direct light to prevent sprouting. This transformation happens because cold temperatures convert potato starch into sugar. This results in a gritty texture and a slightly sweet flavor.
The health implications extend beyond mere taste changes. Never store potatoes in the fridge. Refrigeration turns potato starch into sugar more quickly, and when baked or fried, these sugars may produce the cancer-causing chemical acrylamide, according to Public Health England, an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care in the United Kingdom. The ideal storage temperature for potatoes is around forty-five degrees Fahrenheit, which is warmer than most refrigerators.
Think of potatoes as living organisms that need to breathe. Potatoes do best at 45° F (most refrigerators are set from 35° F to 38° F). Store them in a paper bag in the cool pantry. Light exposure is equally problematic, as it can turn potatoes green and bitter.
Tomatoes Lose Their Flavor and Turn Mealy
Keep your whole tomatoes at room temperature to ensure optimal flavor and juiciness. The science behind this recommendation reveals how refrigeration disrupts the cellular structure of this beloved fruit. Cool air alters chemical pathways in tomatoes, slowing those that contribute to fresh flavor and accelerating others that dull flavor.
Not only are they porous enough to absorb various odors in your fridge, but their cells also react poorly to the cold, which can cause them to become mealy. The chill can also mask many of their inherent flavors, so the eating experience will be improved with a non-refrigerated tomato. Recent research from 2020 does suggest that short-term refrigeration for a day or two might not significantly impact taste, but longer storage periods definitely compromise quality.
For the best tomato experience, keep them on your counter where they can continue developing their complex flavor compounds. Once fully ripe, you can briefly refrigerate them if needed, but return them to room temperature before eating for optimal taste.
Onions Need Air Circulation, Not Humid Confinement
Ever notice your onions getting soft and moldy in the fridge? It’s caused by moisture. While you can refrigerate cut onions in a sealed container for two to three days, store whole onions somewhere cool and dry (but not in a plastic bag), away from potatoes.
These vegetables need air circulation to stay fresh. Store whole onions in a hole-punched paper bag in the pantry. Don’t keep near potatoes; onions emit gas and moisture that can cause potatoes to spoil quickly. The relationship between onions and potatoes is particularly important to understand, as they can accelerate each other’s decay when stored together.
The moisture in refrigerators creates the perfect environment for mold growth on onions. Instead, they thrive in dry, well-ventilated spaces where air can circulate freely around them. A mesh bag or perforated paper bag in a cool pantry works perfectly for maintaining their quality for weeks.
Garlic Becomes Rubbery and Sprouts Green Shoots
Whole garlic and unpeeled cloves are best kept in a cool, dry place, in part because temps below 40°F speed the growth of a green sprout from the garlic. Refrigeration causes it to become rubbery too. Those green sprouts aren’t just unsightly, they also carry a bitter taste that can overpower dishes.
Again, think about how you buy garlic: on a shelf in the grocery store – and remember that when you store it. This simple observation provides a valuable clue about optimal storage conditions. Garlic bulbs have evolved to survive in dry, well-ventilated environments, not the humid confines of a refrigerator.
The texture changes in refrigerated garlic are particularly noticeable. The cold temperatures break down the cell walls, leading to a soft, rubbery consistency that’s unpleasant to work with. Fresh garlic should be firm and easy to slice or crush.
Bread Goes Stale Faster Due to Starch Retrogradation
For starters, let’s settle this right now: Bread does not belong in the fridge. While many people refrigerate bread thinking they’re extending its life, they’re actually accelerating the staling process through a phenomenon called starch retrogradation.
The rate of starch recrystallisation was affected by storage temperature and time, where refrigeration temperatures accelerated RS formation and total crystallinity more than storage time at both frozen and room temperature. Since experiments have demonstrated that low temperatures can expedite the retrogradation of starch products, all breads were sealed and stored at room temperature.
Keeping bread in the fridge will protect it from mold for longer periods of time, but this may be at the expense of taste. “Refrigerated bread gets dried out and is not as tasty,” she says. According to the USDA, bread can be stored at room temperature for two to four days, but it will last seven to 14 days in the refrigerator. The trade-off between longevity and quality isn’t worth it for most households.
The freezer, however, is different story entirely. Freezing bread essentially stops the staling process, making it a better long-term storage option than refrigeration.
Coffee Beans Absorb Odors and Lose Their Oils
You’ve probably heard that keeping your coffee beans in a cool, dark place is optimal, so you might think that the fridge is a good spot for them, but it’s just not necessary. For one, they could absorb the moisture and odors in your fridge, and two, they will be harder to brew, resulting in potentially altered coffee flavor.
Stored in the fridge, your coffee is more likely to pick up other flavors around it. Instead, keep it in a sealed container, in the pantry away from sunlight. Coffee beans are incredibly porous and will readily absorb the aromas of nearby foods, from leftover curry to strong cheeses.
The moisture issue is equally problematic. Coffee beans contain oils that give them their distinctive flavors, and refrigerator humidity can interfere with these delicate compounds. Room temperature storage in an airtight container preserves both the flavor oils and prevents contamination from other food odors.
For long-term storage, the freezer works better than the refrigerator, but even then, beans should be in completely airtight containers to prevent moisture and odor absorption.
