Top 8 refrigerator hacks from Mitsubishi Electric

If you have ever taken on the daunting task of cleaning out your refrigerator, you’ll be familiar with the unorganised clutter, half-used sauces and wilted produce lurking at the back you had completely forgotten about.

A well-organised fridge is key to keeping your food fresh for as long as possible. Making the most of the space available, ensuring produce is stored correctly and keeping track of what food you have in stock will ensure you can always make the most of the food in your fridge.

Here are the top 8 refrigerator hacks from the fridge experts at Mitsubishi Electric 

1. Have an ‘Eat Me First’ Shelf

Choose a shelf in the fridge where you put food that other people can help themselves to, so they don’t accidentally eat the key ingredient for tonight’s dinner! This is the perfect place for leftovers that need to be eaten, the yoghurt which is approaching its best before date and snacks for the kids.

2. Don’t Overfill Your Fridge

It’s important that your fridge isn’t too full as the air needs to be able to circulate in order to keep your food cold. If your fridge is chocka, you can take out eggs or sauces such as sweet chilli, soy or tomato sauce which don’t need to be stored in the fridge. There are also many items you can store in the freezer if you’re not planning on eating them that day.

3. Be Careful About What You Chop

While #mealprep can help make your weekdays easier, your salad vegetables may not last as long if you cut them in advance because they will deteriorate much faster than whole produce. In order to make your produce last longer, don’t chop it until you need it.

4. Use Your Carton

Place an egg carton bottom in one of your door shelves to hold your sauces in place upside down. You won’t have to shake until your arm is sore trying to get mayo out of the bottle again!

5. Not All Food Belongs in the Fridge

There are certain foods that don’t belong in the fridge. Tomatoes will go bland and odourless in the fridge—keep them comfy at room temperature. Onions and potatoes do best in a cooler environment with low moisture, so store them in a dark cupboard or another place outside of the fridge – but make sure you store them away from each other. 

6. Photograph Your Fridge

Before heading to the store to stock up, double check the fridge to make sure you don’t already have an open container of what you need. For an easy reminder, take a photo of the contents of your fridge before you head out for the weekly food shop.

7. Keep Your Fruit and Vege Separate

Those drawers at the bottom of your fridge (otherwise known as a veggie crisper or humidity drawer) have a very important purpose – keeping your food fresher for longer.

Mitsubishi Electric Refrigerators are specifically designed with a separate Humidity Drawer, with some models such as the new CX Designer Series also featuring advanced Vitalight Technology. To keep food as nature intended, the Vitalight Humidity Drawer recreates sunlight to maintain vitamin levels with an amber LED light.

However, if you don’t have a Mitsubishi Electric Refrigerator, you can still extend the life of your produce simply by keeping your fruit and vegetables separate from each other. Many fruits, including apples, peaches, plums and pears produce ethylene; a chemical that helps them to ripen. Unfortunately, the ethylene produced can also promote ripening in other plants, causing vegetables to go yellow, limp, or even sprout; which is why you want to keep fruit away from vegetables. Keep your vegetables in your crisper drawer and your fruit on a shelf in the fridge.

8. Love Your Leftovers

Get your leftovers into the fridge within two hours of them being cooked – there is no need to wait for your food to be completely cool as modern refrigerators can handle the heat.

Click here to find out more about Mitsubishi Electric Refrigerators.