Apples are known as the "fruit of wisdom" and the "fruit of memory," and are undoubtedly one of the most beneficial fruits for health. Many people also love to eat apples. However, a Weibo post ["Throw Away the Whole Apple If It's Even a Little Rotten!"] might have changed the way you eat apples. For convenience, many people buy large quantities of fruit to store at home. Even if they find a piece of fruit is slightly rotten, they are reluctant to throw it away, thinking they can just cut off the bad part and eat the rest!
Can you still eat an apple if it's a little rotten?
Experts say that if an apple is just bruised, it can be eaten for a short period. However, if it is moldy and rotten, even if only a small part is bad, the seemingly good parts will also contain patulin, because the patulin produced by the mold can spread to other parts of the fruit. Eating one or two such apples may not cause poisoning, but it is still not good for your health in the long run. It is recommended not to eat moldy apples. If there is just a small spot, you can cut off more of the flesh depending on the situation.
Four ways to remove pesticide residues:
First trick: Soaking
Soak the vegetables you bought for a few minutes before rinsing. Or you can soak vegetables in baking soda water to neutralize the toxicity of pesticides.
This method seems simple, but you should pay attention to a few things: 1. Do not use regular detergents to wash fruits and vegetables, as the chemical ingredients in the detergent can easily remain on the produce, which is not good for human health. 2. When soaking, keep the fruits and vegetables intact to avoid pesticide penetration and the loss of some vitamins.
Second trick: Peeling
For vegetables like cucumbers and eggplants, which generally use more pesticides, you can peel them and eat them directly. This method seems simple, but it has its downside because most of the nutrients in fruits and vegetables with skin are in the peel, such as phytochemicals, vitamins, and minerals. If you don't mind losing these, it's fine, as we can make up for them with other foods.
Third trick: Soaking in rice washing water
In daily life, rice washing water is quite common. We almost all rely on rice as our staple food. The most common use we hear for rice washing water is to water and fertilize flowers, but it is also a good "remedy" for removing pesticide residues. Rice washing water is weakly alkaline, which can neutralize pesticide ingredients and reduce their effectiveness; the starch in rice washing water also has strong adhesion. Therefore, soaking and rinsing vegetables with rice washing water is simple, convenient, easy to implement, and has significant effects.
Fourth trick: Cooking and heating
Heating can also decompose pesticides. For some heat-resistant vegetables, such as cauliflower, beans, and celery, wash them and then blanch them in boiling water for a few minutes, which can reduce the amount of pesticides by 30%. It should be noted that the vegetables should be kept intact during the blanching process. After further cooking, 90% of the pesticides can be removed.