The perfect place to store potatoes and keep them better for longer

NUTRITION

You should keep them in a dark and cool place, but not in the fridge

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It is possible that when you read the title of this article, the first thing you thought of is the bad smell that a potato gives off when it goes bad. It's a difficult smell to forget, right? Well, so that it does not happen again, here we will explain where you should store them and in what conditions so that they do not rot again and keep them for longer.

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— All Blog Things Fri Jul 23 14:43:34 +0000 2021

no fridge

The first thing you should know is that you should NOT store them in the fridge. Forget it, because if you do, the potatoes will go through a process called "potato cold sweetening." This means that the starch in the tuber is converted into glucose and fructose by the action of an enzyme. Therefore, when you go to cook, the potatoes will be softer and possibly lose their usual texture. On the other hand, if your intention is to make French fries, be careful because it will have more acrylamide. This toxin is defined as "a chemical substance that is created naturally in food products that contain starch during daily cooking processes at high temperatures", according to the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition, and can have carcinogenic effects in people.

To avoid the formation of acrylamide, you should keep the potatoes out of the fridge and reduce the cooking time so that they do not burn.

little sunlight

The potatoes should be stored somewhere that has a temperature between 6ºC and 8ºC. In this way, you will be able to maintain its properties and not reduce the amount of vitamin C.

Another tip that will help you is to store it in an area where it does not receive sunlight. This will ensure that they maintain their color (they will not turn green) and that glycoalkaloids will not be created. These natural toxins have the function of "protecting these plants against the attack of insects, fungi, etc., contributing to the resistance of the plants against pests and pathogens, protecting them against the attack of insects, fungi, etc", as explained the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Therefore, by protecting the potato, it becomes toxic to humans.

Our body will notice the side effects of this toxin if one milligram per kilo of body weight is consumed. Therefore, if you weigh 50 kg, consuming 50 mg of this toxin will cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. This proportion harms, above all, children and babies, since it is easier to reach the point of intoxication due to the fact of weighing less than adults. Therefore, if we want to know if they have glycoalkaloids, we will have to look if the potato has green areas on the skin.

In conclusion, you should keep the potatoes in a cool and dark place, but not in the fridge.

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