Bananas will rot quickly if they're stored in common kitchen place - The Mirror US

While it might seem like a no-brainer to store bananas in a fruit bowl, this is actually one of the worst places for them.

This common mistake can cause your bananas to spoil and turn mushy at an accelerated rate.

The culprit? A substance called ethylene gas, which most fruits produce naturally. This growth hormone helps fruit ripen and develop more flavor.

However, when too much fruit is piled together, they release excessive amounts of ethylene gas, causing all nearby produce to ripen and rot faster. Bananas, with their short lifespan, are particularly sensitive to ethylene gas and release a lot from their stems.

So, it's best to keep bananas away from other fruits. But there's an exception: citrus fruits like oranges and lemons, which are unaffected by the gas, reports the Express.

Experts at Zest Food Service advise against storing bananas with fruits without a protective peel. They explain: "The ethene which bananas release can affect many other fruits, such as apples and pears, which is why you should keep the bananas separate from these fruits unless you intentionally want to ripen them quicker."

Also, avoid storing bananas next to avocados unless you want to speed up their ripening process. The same goes for honeydew, mangos, peaches, and plums.

Eager to keep your bunch of bananas fresher for longer? Ditch the fruit bowl!

Experts suggest isolating bananas in a separate bowl and wrapping their stems—blocking ethylene gas is key. "If you block this crown with cling-film or silver foil, you can prevent the gas from escaping and severely slow down the ripening process. This could give you another three to five days on the natural ripening timescale."

Just when those yellow beauties start spotting up, pop them into the fridge.

It might feel odd, given their tropical roots, but chilling out bananas actually extends their shelf life without harming the taste inside, even if skins go dark—the fruit within stays perfect. "You can store them in the fridge and this will maintain the firmness and flavour of the banana, but will allow the skin to turn brown, even though the fruit inside remains light colored."

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Remember, cold storage halts ripening in its tracks—great for ripe bananas, not so much for the green ones that never got their moment in the sun to sweeten up.

The experts revealed some fruity hacks, stating: "Keep in mind with delayed ripening options that you will effectively pause the process at the point where the banana currently is. If you stick a green banana in the fridge or wrap the stem, it will stay green and unripe, so choose the level of ripeness you desire, before pursuing either of the above options."

They added that keeping bananas away from certain fruits and refrigerating them when yellow can extend freshness for up to two additional weeks.