Grapes are, in my humble opinion, one of the best snacking fruits. You can pop frozen grapes for dessert, cook them down into a savory sauce, and heck, according to tradition, you can even take a bag of grapes to your New Year’s Eve celebration to divine your future. The one thing you shouldn’t do is taste grapes at the grocery store before buying them, because eating unwashed grapes is a big no-no. But just how are you supposed to wash your grapes once you’ve brought them back to your humble abode?
The answer is perhaps surprising, considering how difficult it seems to wash every single tiny grape in a bunch. All you need is cold running water. You can either soak your grapes in a bowl so you can gently rub each grape free of any residue before giving it a final rinse in running water, or you can go through the whole cleaning process right under the tap. You can also give them a soak in baking soda if you’re particularly worried about lingering pesticides. Just let them sit in a baking soda bath for about 15 minutes (use about a teaspoon per 2 cups of water), and then give them another rinse.
What to avoid when cleaning your grapes
There are a few mistakes people make when washing up their grapes that you may be making, too. You don’t have to worry about scrubbing the life out of them or trying to remove that white stuff on grapes, for starters. This is actually the bloom – it is a naturally occurring yeast coating that protects the fruit and is not at all harmful. If you don’t feel like snacking on soap, you shouldn’t use detergent or produce cleaner either, since grapes are pretty porous and can absorb anything you put on them.
Last but certainly not least, don’t wash your grapes too early. It is best to stash them in the fridge and only wash them right before you eat them. Excess moisture during storage speeds up spoilage, which means you could end up with a big bag full of mushy and moldy fruit before you even get to enjoy any. Fortunately, these are all easy fixes that you can implement the very next time you get your hands on some grapes. Wash them up the right way, and you’ll get even more mileage out of every precious bag you grab.
