Carrots are a staple in many people’s kitchens, and they go so well with many dishes. You might love carrots and this means that you decide to keep them around quite frequently.
If you have some grated carrots left over that you weren’t able to use, then you might be worried about how long they will stay good. Eventually, grated carrots are going to turn brown, and it isn’t going to be a good idea to eat them at that point.
Is there anything you can do to make grated carrots stay good for longer periods of time? Read on to learn how to keep grated carrots from turning brown.
While you aren’t going to be able to keep grated carrots from turning brown forever, it might be possible to delay the process somewhat. After reading the information below, you should have a much better idea of what you should be doing.
Grated Carrots Won’t Keep as Long as Whole Carrots
The first thing that you need to know is that grated carrots are simply not going to keep as long as whole carrots. Fresh carrots will usually last for up to three weeks in the refrigerator, and you can count on cut carrots to last a similar amount of time when stored right.
Grated carrots are a bit of a different story, though, because of what has been done to them. Generally, they’re only going to be able to stay good for around a week at best if you store them well.
There isn’t going to be much getting around this, and you should endeavor to use the grated carrots before they go bad. If you’re going to grate carrots, then you should try to ensure that you will be able to use all of them before they turn brown.
Nothing is going to be able to stay fresh and crisp forever, and even whole carrots will start to turn brown after three weeks have passed in most instances. Be mindful of this and decide when you should grate carrots wisely.
How to Store Grated Carrots
You likely already know that most people store carrots in the refrigerator. It isn’t unusual for people to place carrots in the crisper section of a refrigerator without putting them in any type of container.
Carrots usually come in a plastic bag of some type, but you can also buy fresh individual carrots from local markets. When you choose to grate the carrots, it’s also going to be best to store them in the fridge, but you’re going to need a container for them.
If you want the grated carrots to stay good for as long as possible, then you should store them in an airtight container to keep air out. Exposure to the air is what will speed up the process of the carrots turning brown, and you can mitigate that by using an airtight container with a lid.
Most types of food storage containers that people use for leftovers will work for storing shredded carrots. You just want to place the shredded carrots in the container and then put them in the fridge.
It’s important to note that the shredded carrots will likely only stay fresh for about a week. It could wind up being less time than that if the carrots were close to going bad before you shredded them.
Sometimes it’s hard to tell exactly how long carrots will take to turn brown. There are so many factors at play, and it might come down to how fresh the carrots really were when you purchased them from the store.
Regardless, your best bet is going to be to store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You could also store them in a plastic bag that is capable of being sealed, but you’ll want to ensure that you squeeze as much air out as possible to get good results.
Storing Shredded Carrots in Jars of Water
One unusual idea that some people swear by is to store shredded carrots in mason jars that are full of water. People actually use this storage method for cut carrots as well, and it’s said that the carrots will stay fresh and crisp for around one week if you do this.
The basic idea is to fill a mason jar with the shredded carrots that you want to store. Once this is done, you’re going to add filtered water to the mason jars.
Close the mason jars up using the included lids and then store the jars in the refrigerator. If all goes as planned, your shredded carrots should stay good for up to a week, but your results may vary.
Overall, this idea isn’t better than the idea of just storing the carrots in an airtight container. It’s likely going to be easier and less messy to store shredded carrots in an airtight food storage container.
That doesn’t mean that this method has no merit, though. If you think that this storage method sounds appealing, then you should know that many people have had good results when storing both cut carrots and shredded carrots in mason jars filled with water.
Use Your Carrots
Using your carrots is going to be for the best because they aren’t going to stay good for too long. The best that you can hope for when trying to keep shredded carrots from turning brown is to make them last for a week.
If you have a significant amount of shredded carrots to use up, then you should consider looking for recipes that call for shredded carrots. Make an effort to use the shredded carrots in various dishes so that you can eat them before they go bad.
Shredded carrots can be used to make a very good type of salad if you’re looking for lunch ideas. You can also use shredded carrots in all sorts of dishes that you might want to cook for dinner.
If you don’t use the shredded carrots soon, then they’re just going to turn brown. Once shredded carrots turn brown, it’s going to be time to throw them out.
No one likes wasting food, and this is why you should be proactive. Consider how long the shredded carrots have been in storage so that you can utilize them in a dish before it’s too late.
Final Thoughts
Now you know the best options that are available to store shredded carrots for as long as possible. They aren’t going to be able to keep from turning brown for too long, but you can get a good seven days out of them when the conditions are right.
Just do your best to keep an eye on how long you’ve been storing the shredded carrots. If you notice that they’re starting to turn brown, then you might want to just go ahead and throw them out.
Being smart about using food before it turns bad will prevent you from being wasteful. Try not to buy more carrots than you need from the grocery store so that you don’t encounter situations where you need to throw things away too often.
If all goes well, then you’ll be eating fresh shredded carrots and enjoying your meals. You know what to do to get the best results, and now it’s just up to you to pay attention to how old the shredded carrots are.
I have two Associate’s degrees, one in Medical Assisting and the other in Computer Technician, and I am roughly five classes from a bachelor’s degree. Though I never ended up working in the medical field, I have five and a half years of experience in IT. I recently became a stay-at-home mom to my two young boys, and I’m so excited to start this adventure with them! In my spare time, I love to bake and read pretty much anything I can get my hands on.