Chef confirms where fruit and veg should be kept

Cadbury recently ended the debate once and for all about where their bars of chocolate should be kept.

Cadbury Australia settled the debate on Twitter, after they were asked the question directly.

And it's not good news for anyone who likes icy cold chocolate.

They explained: "Chocolate should always be stored in a slightly cool, dry, dark place such as cupboard or pantry at temperatures less than 21°C to ensure the quality isn't compromised."

And now we've also been given answers on where we should be keeping our fruit and veg.

Mimi Morley, a Senior Chef at HelloFresh, shared her top tips for preserving your five a day.

She began by explaining that people often make a big mistake with their banana storage.

"It’s a common misconception that bananas should be kept out of the fridge," she says. "Placing them in a cool environment once at your preferred level of ripeness can actually help prolong the shelf life. While the skin will continue to brown, the flesh of the banana will remain the same and can extend shelf-life by one week."

Mimi then went on to point out that It’s not just bananas that give off ethylene gas, which ripens fruit. Apples and avocados will also help speed up the process too.

The food expert continued to say that despite the phrase 'cool as a cucumber' cucumbers shouldn't be kept in the fridge.

Instead she recommends storing them in a cool but not too cold environment as cucumbers react badly to extremely cold conditions.

Her other top tips include keeping oranges out of the fridge to avoid moisture ruining the skin and subsequently the flavour - they’re most likely to thrive in a fruit bowl.

She adds that fruits which fall under the berry category, such as raspberries, strawberries, blackberries and cherries, should always be kept in the fridge but others require different conditions at different stages in the ripening process.

She concludes: "Fruits such as apricots, kiwis, and mangoes are best left to ripen outside of the fridge, however once at the level of preferred ripeness, it’s ideal to then put these in the fridge in order to increase their shelf-life and slow down the ripening process.

"While many believe that keeping all fruit and veg in a fridge is the best way to keep them fresh and flavoursome, it’s clear that there really is no one size fits all approach and assessments must be made on a case by case basis as well as considering one’s own taste preference."