Washing Fruit And Veg

[tiggerblue10]

How do you wash soft fruit like raspberries, blackberries, blueberries etc? Do you just rinse under water? How do you wash fruit in general that you'd normally eat with skin like apples, pears etc., and veg for that matter.

Given the recent fears over contaminated frozen veg and watching Alice Beer earlier on This Morning advising everyone to wash all fruit and veg before use it got me thinking that maybe water isn't enough.

Someone once told me that they wash berries in a bicarb and water solution.

[Misky1]

I went through a phase of washing my fruit from Asda after I saw the girl who was stacking them sneeze (a wet sneeze) and just carry on stacking. But then I forgot again. Till now!

[murraymints]

I will put obviously dirty things in a colander under a running tap.. and I tip soft fruits onto a piece of kitchen paper and pat down..then leave for a few mins to see if there is any added protein trying to escape..but don't wash ...would ruin rasps..other berries....

[murraymints]

I polish apples !

[rowanwitch]

All depends on your immune system, I rinse off obvious dirt, but apart from that the only time I wash any food is if it goes on the floor and misses the 5 second rule
Btw I think most worms are picked up from contaminated meat and would be killed by thorough cooking.

[murraymints]

how to be rid of worms... starve for 2 days..unwrap a Mars bar.. drop keks bend over and wave Mars bar at your behookey !! according to my pappa ! lol

[kvalidir]

Behookey! That is such a great word, going to steal that :)

[murraymints]

lol kva..as in "does ma behookey look big in this ? "

[kvalidir]

Awesome! x

[Rockrose]

I only wash new potatoes and lettuce bought from the local farm shop as it still has soil on it.
Other than that I do not bother.

[mccfluff]

washing food in washing up liquid...... no, that's v odd if its true.

i'm in the never bother camp either, i've had a few stomach upsets over the years, never anything major and probably more to do with eating dodgy kebabs on the way home at silly oclock....

[sunny-dave]

I always rinse my plums under a running tap ...

[mccfluff]

which way is the tap running :-D

[woofgang]

dave do you kneel in the sink?

[sunny-dave]

Only if Victoria is present ...

[gness]

Coren-Mitchell, Dave.... ;-)

[Patsy33]

Wash all fruit n veg under cold running water. Always peel my apples.

[snags]

Still jetwashing grapes. Just to be sure like.

[bainbrig]

Minkyme: The more I read your answers, the more I like what
I read.

We use salt as a wash for fruits and vegetables, rinsed off a couple of times.

The British have very little idea of food hygiene.

BB

[rowanwitch]

If you wanted to use anything the safest would be Milton, a short soak in that would be safe at lowish dilutions.

[tiggerblue10]

I rinse most fruit and veg under water but berries just get eaten from the container. I have found on occasion some sandy soil on strawberries which made me gag when crunching so I wash them now.

I hate the thought of some other shopper in the supermarket touching loose apples, pears etc. You don't know where there hands have been. I'm a bit OCD with handwashing anyway. Don't think I'll go as far as washing up liquid though.