Bananas have a frustrating habit of looking absolutely perfect one day and suddenly turning brown, soft, and spotty the next.
If you’ve ever bought a bunch of beautiful yellow bananas, only to find yourself staring at an increasingly brown fruit bowl a few days later, you’re definitely not alone. Bananas ripen quickly, and once they pass that perfect stage, it can feel like there’s very little time left to enjoy them.
In fact, food waste is a real issue when it comes to fresh produce. So when a simple kitchen-storage trick promises to keep bananas looking fresh for longer, it’s worth taking a closer look.
According to food-storage expert Amy Cross, one surprisingly simple solution involves something many of us already have in the kitchen: a glass jar with a lid.
Her experiment suggested that storing a banana half in a sealed glass jar in the refrigerator could keep it looking bright yellow and firm for up to 16 days.
That doesn’t mean every banana will last exactly 16 days. Fridge temperatures, banana ripeness, and storage conditions can all affect the result, but the idea is certainly intriguing.
Why Do Bananas Turn Brown So Quickly?
Before getting into the glass jar trick, it helps to understand why bananas ripen so rapidly.
Bananas are climacteric fruits, which means they continue ripening after they’re harvested. During this process, they naturally produce ethylene, a plant hormone that helps trigger ripening.
As bananas ripen, the peel changes from green to yellow. The fruit becomes softer, starches are converted into sugars, and the aroma becomes stronger. Brown spots gradually appear, and eventually, the flesh becomes very soft.
Ethylene doesn’t work alone. Temperature, oxygen exposure, humidity, and the condition of the fruit all influence how quickly bananas move through the ripening process.
Why the Fruit Bowl May Not Be Ideal
A fruit bowl sitting on the kitchen counter looks cheerful and convenient, but it may not be the best place for bananas if your goal is to keep them yellow for as long as possible.
When several ripening fruits are kept together, ethylene can accumulate around them. Apples, pears, avocados, and other climacteric fruits can also produce ethylene.
And then there’s heat.
A banana bowl positioned near a sunny window, oven, stovetop, or radiator can ripen considerably faster than one kept somewhere cooler.
The Glass Jar Banana Experiment
Food-storage expert Amy Cross of The Cross Legacy tested whether a glass jar could make a noticeable difference.
In her experiment, she used three bananas. Two were left at room temperature, while another banana was cut in half.
One half remained at room temperature, while the other half was placed into a glass jar with a metal lid and refrigerated.
After 16 days, Cross reported that the refrigerated banana half still had relatively bright yellow skin, while the banana kept at room temperature had developed considerably more brown and dark spotting.
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