Sorry to break this to you, but you’re stocking your fridge wrong.
That’s the takeaway from a chef’s viral post about the proper way to stock a fridge.
Chef Payal Thakurani is the founder of Commune Kitchen, a Singapore-based cooking school. On social media Commune Kitchen shares recipes, cooking advice, and, recently, some advice about where food belongs in the refrigerator that is blowing minds across the web.
Earlier this week, Thakurani revealed the proper place for each category of refrigerated item on Commune Kitchen’s (@communekitchensg) TikTok account. The categories are leftovers, drinks, dairy, meat, fruits and vegetables, and condiments.
The top shelf, she explains, is where your leftovers aka “ready to eat foods” and drinks belong.
As to the middle shelf, she says, is for dairy: “butter, cream, milk, eggs, etc.”
“I do not put my dairy or my eggs in the door,” Thakurani says.
Why is this? “Because the temperature in the door is very inconsistent and eggs they stay fresher for longer if you keep them in cold, consistent temperature,” she continues.
Meat, per Thakurani, goes on the bottom shelf on a tray or in a sealed container to prevent contamination and maintain its temperature.
“The temperature of the bottom of the refrigerator is always the lowest, the coolest, and meat requires that,” she says.
Fruits and vegetables belong in the drawers because they control humidity, which is important to maintaining freshness as long as possible.
Sauces, condiments, and spices should be stored in the door, she explains, because the higher temperature and fluctuations don’t affect them as much as other items.
Commune Kitchen didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry sent via its contact form.
Eggs go where now?
Commune Kitchen’s post has been viewed 1.7 million times in the three days since it was posted.
Some of the top-liked comments are from people admitting that they’ve been stocking their fridge wrong their entire lives.
“Find space and put it in, done,” reads a comment with 13,000 likes. Another top-ranked comment is from someone admitting that their top shelf is filled with random jars, “possibly all expired.”
Thakurani’s advice for putting eggs on a shelf has some questioning the makers of refrigerators. If that’s where you should store eggs, they wonder, why do so many fridges have egg drawers?
“It was actually made to store hard boiled eggs,” explained Jonas Milloz. “Housewives used to make hard boiled eggs for breakfast the day before and store them in the fridge so that they can eat them at breakfast on the next day.”
Others refuse to believe eggs should be refrigerated.
“Eggs in the fridge,” wrote one, along with three laughing emojis.
Comments like this led to something of a science lesson for Commune Kitchen’s international audience.
See, in the United States, commercial eggs are washed, while in other countries, eggs are not. Unwashed eggs do not require refrigeration for up to roughly two weeks.
This is because, before laying, the hen’s body creates a protective layer called a “bloom” around the egg. The bloom prevents bacteria from getting inside and spoiling it.
When eggs are washed, often by chemical sanitizers, in large industrial settings, the bloom is removed, making the egg susceptible to faster spoilage. Hence why Americans refrigerate eggs.
Thakurani concludes by offering some bonus advice for maintaining fridge health: don’t block the vents on the side because they’re designed to keep air circulating and put an open box of baking soda inside to reduce odors.
@communekitchensg Food Safety & Hygiene is on the menu this Wednesday at our last Helpers Culinary Program session! ?? We’ll cover all the essentials — from storing ingredients safely to choosing the right chopping boards, and everything in between. ? Sign up your lovely helper for this final class, or book them in for the full 6-week program starting September. More details at communeKitchen.com #communekitchen #communekitchensg #singaporecookingclass #cookingclasssg #helperscookingclass ♬ original sound – Payal Thakurani
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
