25 things you shouldn’t keep in the fridge

There are probably many things in your fridge that don’t need to be there. Storing these items — which should ordinarily be stored at room temperature — in the refrigerator can decrease their taste and quality. According to www.cnet.com, you should remove the following items from your fridge so as to free up space and improve their taste and quality:

• Hot sauce: This can still stay fresh for up to three years without refrigeration, even after opening it.
• Potatoes: They should be stored in paper bags in cool, dry stores. Putting them in the fridge can make them taste funny and rot faster.
• Onions: They do best in dry, ventilated areas. Keep them away from potatoes, though. These tubers can make onions rot faster.
• Garlic: Like onions, garlic is just fine in a dry, ventilated area of the store.
• Basil: Basil is an aromatic plant of the mint family, native to tropical Asia. The leaves are used as a culinary herb, especially in Mediterranean dishes. Basils absorb fridge smells, so it is best to keep it fresh in a cup or vase of water on the counter much like fresh-cut flowers. You can also do this with any other fresh herbs.
• Avocado: Your avocado won’t ripen? That’s because it’s in the fridge. Putting an unripe avocado on the counter will make it ripen much faster. To really speed up the process, put it in a bag with a banana or apple.
• Berries: Putting berries in the fridge can make them rot much faster due to moisture. They’ll be fine in a bowl or basket on the counter.
• Bread: Bread is best when kept at room temperature in a sealed plastic bag. Storing bread in the fridge speeds up the dehydration process and makes it go stale faster.
• Batteries: You might have heard that keeping batteries in the fridge can make them last longer. This is false. The cold can actually be bad for them.
• Tomatoes: Storing tomatoes in the fridge can alter their flavour and make them rot faster. Keeping them on the counter in a bowl is your best bet.
• Coffee: Keep coffee out of the fridge and put in a dry, airtight container in the cupboard.
• Squash: This is an edible gourd, the flesh of which may be cooked and eaten as a vegetable.Most squash, especially those with thicker skin, do well for up to a couple of months in the store.
• Honey: Honey is the only food that doesn’t spoil and doesn’t need to be refrigerated.
• Cake: Most cakes don’t need refrigeration. If it’s unfrosted or has a buttercream or ganache frosting, it’s fine to store it in an airtight container for around three days.
• Uncut melons: They do best on the counter or in a dry store.
• Bananas: Unripe ones should be hung on a banana hook on the counter to ripen. However, ripe ones can be stored in the fridge or freezer to prevent further ripening.
• Ketchup and mustard: They can be kept in the cabinet for around a month without refrigeration because they contain acids that inhibit bacteria growth.
• Peanut butter: This doesn’t need to be refrigerated and can be kept in the cabinet for months, unless it’s organic.
• Cooking oil: This can be kept in the store, with the exception of nut oils.
• Apples, peaches, nectarines and pears: They can be kept in a basket in your store. They will last for about a week.
• Rice: You only need to be kept it in the fridge if it’s cooked. Dry rice can be stored in canisters or plastic bags in the store for years. If it’s stored in an airtight container, white rice can last between eight and 10 years. Brown rice can last for up to two years.
• Dried beans: Like rice, dried beans don’t need to be refrigerated. In fact, the moisture in the refrigerator can make beans grow sprouts.
• Make-up: Are you among those women who store their make-up in the fridge? You’re doing it wrong. Make-up are made to be be stored at room temperature. Cold temperatures can destabilise their chemical compositions and make them look awful.
• Pepper: Peppers, both spicy and mild, don’t need to go in the fridge. They taste much better when stored in an open air in a basket on your counter.
• Aubergines: Also known as eggplants, they are meant to be stored on the counter at room temperature.