Almost everyone loves lychees among the summer fruits. In the summer heat, a few lychees seem to cool the whole body. So many people buy large quantities for three or four days at once, but the fruit starts to go bad from the next day.
Fruit sellers in particular cannot sell all their lychees in a day, and the next day they may start to spoil. This is because most people do not know the right way to store them. Stored well, lychees can be kept at home and eaten for a few more days.
Here are some tips that can keep lychees fresh for several days.
Don't break the stems
Have you noticed why sellers sell lychees with the stems and leaves on? If the stem is broken, the lychee starts to spoil very quickly, so sellers hand them over without breaking the stems. You can follow the same tip: after buying lychees, keep them in a cool place or in water without breaking the stems. They will not spoil quickly.
Don't use plastic bags
Sellers usually hand over lychees in plastic bags. But do you store them in the same bag? In a plastic bag the fruit heats up quickly and spoils fast. So take them out of the bag as soon as you get home and keep them somewhere cool. It is even better to spread leaves on the floor or cover them with paper. Kept this way, lychees stay fresh for 2 to 3 days.
The right time to buy
It is commonly said that lychees should not be eaten before the first or second rain of the season, because rainwater greatly reduces the excess acid in the fruit. Natural water not only makes lychees tastier but also healthier. That is why many villagers and people in small towns still wait for the rain, when the lychees become sweeter.
Use water
Cold water can be used to keep lychees fresh for two to three days. After bringing them home, fill a bowl with water and soak the lychees in it. This removes excess substances on the fruit and makes it safer to eat.
Don't put them in the fridge straight away
Do not put lychees in the fridge as soon as you bring them home from the market, as they may spoil quickly. Instead, first wash them well with water, then refrigerate them.
Lychee jam or pickle
Since lychees do not keep for long, you can make a different kind of pickle or jam from them. You can also use this method when the lychees on your own trees ripen all at once. Lychees cannot be stored for very long, but these methods help keep them good for as long as possible.
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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