Food science expert warns against ‘rubber band’ method for preserving cut apples: ‘A total fail’
It’s so disappointing when you cut up a fresh apple to eat, only to find the slices going brown after a short amount of time.
Never fear — Problems Solved (@problemsolvedshow) is to the rescue! The page, which aims to find simple solutions for common problems, recently put three apple-saving tricks to the test — and you may be surprised at which one worked best.
The scoop
In the video, Kristopher Juniel, host of Problems Solved, is putting three methods to the test: a salt soak, a honey soak, and the ‘rubber band’ method.
For the salt soak, he adds a tablespoon of salt to a bowl of water, adds in the sliced apples, and lets them sit for three minutes. He uses the same process for the honey trick. For the rubber band “hack,” the host bundles the apple slices and wraps a rubber band around them.
After three minutes, Kristopher drains and rinses the salt and honey apples separately. After leaving them out for a bit, he compares all three apples.
“I let these sit out for a while and I must say, the salt soak is nearly perfect,” he says. “And not salty at all. These taste amazing.”
With the salt soak being the clear winner, the honey-soaked apples came in a close second. As for the rubber band method?
“It’s not that effective and it’s more effort than it’s worth,” he says. “That rubber band apple was a total fail.”
How it’s helping
Having food go bad is always a bummer. And nothing feels worse than having to throw out food you were excited to enjoy. This hack helps keep food fresh longer, which means it won’t end up in a garbage can. Finding ways to extend the life of your food is good, because 30-40% of all food is thrown away in the U.S. each year.
Wasted food isn’t just a burden on the planet either. It’s also a burden on your wallet. With inflation sending grocery bills higher, you’ll want to enjoy all the fruits of your labor to the fullest.
What everyone’s saying
A lot of commenters already used one of these hacks as their tried-and-true method.
“I swear by the honey & water!” one person commented. “It works.”
Others added their own methods, the most popular of which was definitely lemon juice.
“Lemon juice is the ticket!” someone said. “And it gives them extra zing.”
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