How To Store Apples So They Stay Crisp

With prime apple harvest season being September and October, now is the time to stop up on these crunchy gems packed with fiber and vitamin C. Shockingly, there are more than 100 different apple varieties grown in the U.S. This fruit is also quite versatile. You have your tart, mildly sweet apples like Jonagolds, Granny Smiths or Honeycrisps to your juicy and sweet varieties like Gala, Fuji and McIntosh, plus everything in-between.

If you’re wondering how to store apples in your fridge to preserve them the longest or simply how to choose a good one, we’ve got you covered.

The Best Way To Eat Apples

When eating a fresh apple, keep the skin on. This is where the most nutrients can be found. If you discard the skin, you’ll remove most of the fiber and the flavonoids. Apples are easy to store and transport, making them a great on-the-go snack. You can eat them on their own, or with nut butter or a slice of cheese. Bake them into pies, sauté them or transform them into juice or cider.

Dehydrated apples make a delicious snack, too, especially when mixed with nuts and seeds as a trail mix. Just be aware that apples lose vitamin C when they are dried.

Be Selective When Picking

Do you consistently find yourself picking bad apples? While it’s virtually impossible to tell if an apple is going to be mealy by just looking at it, avoiding varieties that are known for this trait, such as Galas, might be the simplest. When you’re at the grocery store or farmers’ market, look for apples without any bruises or flat spots. Avoid punctures when possible because they can lead to faster decay. If you don’t see any wrinkling when you give it a gentle squeeze, it’s a keeper.

How To Store Apples From The Market

With a little prep work, apples can be stored for a surprisingly long amount of time, remaining fresh for at least one to two months, if not longer. Skip displaying them in a bowl on your countertop because they’ll only keep for about a week and instead place them in their own crisper drawer.

Apples continue to ripen after they’re harvested and emit a gas called ethylene. The fridge’s cold temperature helps slow down the production of ethylene, but some varieties will still cast a small amount. Ethylene speeds up the ripening of other produce in close proximity, which is why apples do best when stored on their own. (Hot tip: If you need to ripen a hard avocado quickly, pop it in a paper bag with an apple.)

How To Store Apples From Apple Picking

If you go apple picking and come home with a large batch, try wrapping the apples in damp paper towels and storing them in a punctured plastic bag (again, in their own crisper drawer).

Now that you know how to store apples, you can eat them any way you want, like by baking them into a bubble-up dish or creating an apple rosemary fizz cocktail. Either way, it’ll be delicious.

This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for additional stories.