1,565 easy and fully explained recipes, with +66K photos and 78 videos

Good fridge management

We all have a fridge at home – it's an indispensible part of the kitchen and so much a part of the furniture that we tend not to pay it much attention. But often, out of habit, we don't use it properly. Here are a few tips to help you get more from your fridge.

30 K 4.4/5 (21 reviews)

Last modified on: April 19^th 2011

For this post: Comment Follow Ask me a question Send to a friend

Good fridge management

Temperature

We often place too much trust in the temperature inside our fridges, saying, “It's cold enough” , but this is something that should be checked at least once with a thermometer.

The correct temperature inside a fridge should be around 6°C (43°F), in any case, never above 8°C (50°F), otherwise food will not keep so well, or not keep at all. Adjust the thermostat to produce this temperature and modify it according to the season, as the fridge needs to be colder in summer than in winter.

The temperature inside a fridge is not even. It is colder near the top (where the cold is created) than at the bottom. So put at the top everything which needs to be kept really cold, such as dairy products, and at the bottom things like fruit and vegetables that don't need to be kept as cold.

Hygiene

A fridge should always be kept very clean as it is in contact with all our fresh food, so it needs to be cleaned thoroughly on a regular basis (every few months). This means: unplug it, empty it completely and clean the inside with a sponge and detergent.

When you come back from shopping, don't put all the food wrappers straight in the fridge, as they are not always very clean and slow down the cooling process. It is better to “undress” everything before putting it the fridge: take yoghurts out of their cardboard, unwrap fruit, etc.

Similarly, don't put dirty vegetables, such as carrots and mushrooms straight in the fridge, but wash and prepare them first.

A few things to avoid

Putting something in the fridge to cool it down: this will start the fridge motor, and consumes energy needlessly. It is better to allow things to cool to room temperature, and only then put them in the fridge.
Leaving the door open between getting 2 or more items out: the fridge starts to warm up rapidly once the door is open, and only cools slowly when it is closed again. You should reduce to a minimum the time the door is left open.
Putting a dish in the fridge without covering it: smells can be transferred from one food to another and your dish could take on a very odd smell, or pass its smell on to something else, or both.

Better kept out of the fridge

Eggs: there's no need, they keep quite well at room temperature.
Tomatoes: they lose all their flavour.
Strawberries: they lose their flavour when cold, but will regain it on returning to room temperature.
Naturally matured cheeses: they lose their flavour but will regain it on returning to room temperature
Oil: may well turn solid.
Vinegar: keeps well at room temperature.

In the fridge, but beware of…

Fruit or vegetables in a sealed or knotted plastic bag: they will soon create a humid atmosphere and will rot very quickly. It is better to open the bag, or take them out.
Herbs: There's no need to stand the stems in water on the windowsill, it doesn't help. It's better to wrap the stems in damp absorbant paper then put them in the fridge in a plastic bag.

Lasts posts

A tablet holder

Perhaps you too cook by consulting your recipe on a tablet or phone, and putting it down on your worktop? It's practical, but not the best solution. Here's a look at how you can make an inexpensive, almost universal stand.
March 14^th 20268495

Pre-calibrated pastry dough

When making pie dough (shortbread, shortcrust, sweet...), it's always a good idea to make a lot at once, and then divide it into pieces, which you can freeze. I've already pointed out the mistake not to make, which is to form a ball before freezing. It's difficult to roll out afterwards because...
March 9^th 20261,0065

Butter vs. grease

We often read in a recipe where a pastry is put into a mould that, just before pouring, the mould should be buttered or greased. But what's the difference between these 2 terms?
December 1^st 20253,0585

Getting out of the fridge early

Very often when you're cooking, you need to take food or preparations out of the fridge, to use them in the recipe in progress. There's nothing tricky about this: you just take them out of the fridge and use them, usually immediately, in the recipe. But is this really a good method?
November 24^th 20251,9925

Who's making the croissants?

When you look at a bakery from the outside, you naturally think that in the bakery, the bakers make the bread, and in the laboratory, the pastry chefs make the cakes. It's very often like that, with each of these professions having quite different ways of working, but sometimes there's also one...
November 23^th 20251,820

See all posts Random post RSS feeds

Other pages you may also like

The 3 kinds of meringue

Meringue – what could be simpler? Just beaten egg whites with sugar added. This makes a fairly stiff mixture which can then be cooked in a cool oven to create those lovely, light confections. But in the world of professional patisserie, meringue comes in three different kinds. Even if the...
June 14^th 201366 K4.5

Candied fruits: don't get ripped off

Do you like candied fruit? You might like to nibble a handful or add it to a recipe, like a classic fruit cake or delicious Italian specialities like panettone or sicilian epiphany pie.
June 21^th 201770 K 24.2

Sausage broth

I've already talked to you about vegetable cooking water, which becomes a precious broth after cooking that would be a shame to throw away. Now let's look at the special case of meat cooking broth, and in particular sausages, which are often poached.
June 28^th 202313 K5

Travel cakes

You may have come across the term "travel cakes" ("gateaux de voyage" in french) for certain pastries, so let's take a look at what they're all about.
January 27^th 20257,868

Preserving egg yolks

If you're using only the egg whites in a recipe (such as meringues ), you'll need to store the yolks until you're ready to use them again. There's nothing very complicated about this in principle - all you have to do is chill them, but there are a few pitfalls to be avoided in practice.
June 18^th 20249,0465