TOMATOES are well-loved for their sweet and juicy core, but you might find they don't always live up to the hype.
But it turns out it's all to do with how you are storing them.
While most of us store tomatoes in the fridge without a second thought, a food waste expert has revealed that's the one place they shouldn't end up.
And it makes sense considering most tomatoes are not kept in the refrigerated section in stores.
If your tomatoes aren't ripe enough, keeping them in the fridge will leave them lacking flavour, so it's good to know how to tell when they are ripe so you don't throw any away.
Phillip Quantrell, brand ambassador and food waste expert at InSinkErator told the Express: "A contributing factor to the huge amount of tomato waste that the UK faces is that we’re probably throwing them away too soon, thinking they're over-ripe."
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He revealed that ripe tomatoes have some give in them when touched and have a fragrant smell.
These tomatoes are best stored in the fridge or eaten immediately.
However, if you notice the tomatoes are hard and don't have a fragrance after buying them from the store you should leave them out.
The food waste pro explained: "If you bring home tomatoes that aren’t quite there yet, it’s better to leave them on the side to ripen, as the fridge will interrupt the process, leaving you with tasteless tomatoes.
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"Tomatoes can actually survive for up to seven days out of the fridge, as long as they are kept at room temperature and out of direct sunlight."
Another hot tip to keep tomatoes fresh for longer is storing them stem-side down.
This will prevent moisture loss and can be done for both ripe and unripened tomatoes.
Recently, one woman revealed the best way you can store tomatoes if they are on the verge of going overripe.
Taking to TikTok, Hayli revealed you can store tomatoes in the freezer to keep them fresh for longer.
In the clip, she put the tomatoes in the freezer whole and when she wanted to use them for sauce, defrosted them.
The money-saving tip also meant peeling tomato skins was super easy as they come straight off after being frozen.
She said: “Then once they are thawed good the skin literally peels right off them."
“You don’t have to worry about blanching them or anything like that then they are ready to use.”
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