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Comment by asdff | Hacker News Reader

Some perishables like fruits and vegetables are terrible to buy. Cilantro comes in a massive bunch from which I take three sprigs, and its rotten in a couple days. Bananas are unedible until day 2, then I have maybe a 3-day window to eat all the bananas before they are flabby, brown, and mushy. Even if I throw a handful of arugula in every single one of my meals, its massive tub is barely half empty by the time it starts rotting in my fridge a week after purchase.

Even if I plot and plan to use all my cilantro in 3 days, all my arugula in 1 week, power through 3 bananas a day during my bunch's window of opportunity, I can still end up going out for dinner which throws everything out of schedule. Or maybe I forgot to pull out the chicken out of the freezer and into the marinade this morning, so there is now no point in cooking if I need to wait 2+ hours after I get home for my bird to thaw and flavor.

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Cilantro/Basil/Parsley/Green onions: place the stems in a glass of water,cover with a plastic bag and keep in the refrigerator. It will last more than one week.

Mushrooms: place in a brown bag in the refrigerator. They will last more than a week. They slowly dry up and can be rehydrated like dried mushrooms.

Bananas: when they are about to ripen place in the refrigerator. The skin will turn brown and look miserable but the inside will be just fine. You'll gain two or three days more time to eat them.

Arugula,spinach and other salad greens: Put the leftovers in your lunch bag and snack at work.

Any tips for Avacados? I tried the brown bag but getting them to the right texture that isn't too hard or spoiled is maddening.

Leave them out and as they begin to get soft & ripe place them in the fridge. It'll slow it down, like bananas, and keep them ripe a little longer. When i was using avocados as snacks this was the only way I could keep them for multiple days.

Can confirm! Also, - bread is awesome in the fridge, lasts weeks. - put ice cubes in a plastic bag to stop sublimination - drown basil in olive oil, squeeze out the air, cover in olive oil, then refrigerate - lasts months - peppers: soak and refrigerate in vinegar

I struggle with cheese - olive oil can work but it's awkward.

I HATE bread once it's been refridgerated/frozen... completely destroys the structure and texture of the bread. Only don't mind if you're going to do toast, french toast or some other bread pudding or stuffing application. It's unfit for sandwich use after.

For hard cheese: parchment paper and a ziplock bag.

As someone who often cooks for myself, bananas are a pretty terrible example because you can literally buy one banana if you want. Perhaps I've been violating a taboo all my life, but I have never had a problem breaking up a bunch of bananas in the store.

Fresh herbs I agree. It's one reason I tend to grow them. [ADDED: There are also a lot of frozen and freeze dried options these days that I often take advantage of.]

There are lots of meats you can pull out of the freezer and put in some water for 30 minutes or so.

I'm actually sympathetic to your basic point but it's just not something I find to be a huge problem.

I'll also usually cook two or three dishes that share all those ingredients. So for example, if i buy pre-made pesto sauce, i'll make pasta with pesto sauce, and chicken breast with Pesto sauce. If i buy a lot of Mexican ingredients (beans, cilantro, ground meat et all) i'll make a Chilli and taco bowls.

> I have never had a problem breaking up a bunch of bananas in the store.

Ah, so you're one of those people. Don't you realize you're condemning those poor banana bunches to an ignominous death in the dumpster? Nobody's going to buy a bunch with an uneven number on bananas. :(

Being serious though, I don't think you're violating any major taboo. I see people do the same thing all the time. You're actually performing a public service for all those people who want fewer bananas but are afraid to split the bunches themselves.

TIL this was a thing :-) But then I've never been very good about rules.

It's ok, I am the one who is quite happy to pick up the odds and ends and make a loose bunch

When I buy bananas, I tend to grab a couple of the ripest ones in the pile, plus a few of the greenest ones.

With bananas I make a banana milkshake when they are too soft to be eaten. With cilantro bunch, I keep some for garnishing rest I make chutney. Simple recipe of cilantro, garlic, green chilies, slices of fresh/frozen raw mango or even raw mango powder and salt etc goes in blender and out comes the chutney.

I (not quite sub-consciously) ensure I always leave some bananas to get to that 'black, but not crushed' state - solely to make milkshakes from. I give myself a pass on the calories, as I'm "being green and eating my 5-a-day"

Pro-tip for Bananas: When they start to have black spots on the skin, throw them in the freezer. Use them in a smoothie, it will give your smoothie a really nice creamy texture, almost like an ice-cream and it's all natural!

Yeah, soft bananas are also great for banana muffins.

For banana bread and muffins, you actually want bananas that are basically past ripe enough to eat. The sugar content is significantly higher.

Frozen bananas can also be used for banana bread pancakes (which are not only tasty, but don't require eggs--that's what the bananas are for). Recipe here (I use regular flour, not the whole wheat they call for): https://www.howsweeteats.com/2011/06/whole-wheat-brown-sugar...

I have a love/hate relationship with Avacados. When you time it properly it's amazing, too early/too late and you're screwed.

Dry or freeze your herbs?

Older simpler technology makes for some good habits.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_dehydrator

For cilantro, get a mason jar with a little water in it. After the cilantro is in, cover the leaves with a plastic bag. The cilantro will be good for about a month.

Put your cilantro in a ziplock bag, roll it up to exclude the air before zipping up and keep it in the fridge. Will keep for quite a lot longer.

Peel and freeze your bananas before they go bad. Use the frozen bananas for smoothies, or thaw them for cooking(eg banana bread).

mushy bananas become banana nut bread... you cannot fail this.

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