Tesco explains bananas last longer with little-known storage method

Bananas are one of those food items which tend to get spoiled very quickly, yet they’re also one of the most common purchases for millions of households in the UK.

The potassium-rich yellow fruit has the tendency to overripen very fast and begins developing sickly-looking brown spots, with its peel eventually turning fully black from the outside if not stored properly. Oftentimes, the fruit also rots from the inside in such instances.

It’s for this reason that shoppers are always on the lookout for easy hacks to extend the shelf life of the staple fruit, because who wants to contribute to food waste while also seeing their hard-earned money go down the drain (or in the trash can, in this case)?

Luckily, one of the UK’s biggest supermarkets, Tesco, has shared a little-known storage hack to exponentially increase the longevity of bananas, and it’s so simple and obvious, you’ll be surprised you haven’t given it a go till now.

According to the experts, the secret trick to making bananas last longer is: just freeze them.

The Tesco website states: “Freezers are the most efficient when they are full, so make the most of the space to prevent food waste and have ingredients ready to go.”

Courtney Pallett, Tesco campaigns manager, shared the secret hack: “Your freezer is your friend when it comes to reducing food waste and avoiding throwing food away. Most of the foods that often end up in the bin such as bananas and avocados can be saved by freezing them to use later.”

So, how exactly should you go about freezing your bananas?

The ingenious storage hack

The answer is simple as per Tesco: “Peel ripe bananas and freeze whole or in slices. These can be used straight from the freezer, perfect for cold, thick smoothies or snacking on.”

Some suggest you don’t even necessarily need to peel the bananas before popping them in the freezer, as that step can be done once you pull them out of the ice box.

A food influencer has echoed Tesco’s advice, sharing her own personal pro tips on how to go about storing the fruit.

Lisa Bryan (@downshiftology) writes in the caption of her viral storage hack: “It’s quick and easy to freeze bananas, and bonus – they may even encourage you to make more healthy recipes in the future!”

In the video, Lisa says: “If you accidentally bought too many bananas – we’ve all been there – this is how you freeze them for future use.”

Sharing three ways in which she stores her ‘extra’ bananas, the food influencer shares: “I usually freeze my bananas in halves as it’s the perfect amount for a single-serving green or brown smoothie.

“Just place them on a parchment lined tray and pop them in the freezer for a couple of hours before storing away.”

Lisa’s second trick is cutting the bananas into slices, placing them onto a parchment-lined tray like the first method, and popping them in into the freezer.

Her third and final storage hack is to mash the bananas and put them into moulds — she uses a ‘supercube’ ice tray. The stored bananas in this form work perfectly for making banana bread later.

After a few hours, the frozen bananas across all three methods can be stored away in a resealable freezer bag and used at a later date.