How to Make Your Fresh Berries Last Longer

Fresh berries - Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, and Blueberries in glass jars on the counter.

When you get home from the grocery store, spending a few minutes to wash and store your fresh berries properly will allow you to keep your berries fresher for longer.

How to Wash Fresh Berries

I often get asked about what fresh berries can be washed together. I recommend washing your berries separately. It takes a little more time, but it is worth it to have the best berries. Plus, you can take special care of the more fragile ones, like raspberries.

To wash your berries, you will place them in a large bowl with 10 cups of cool water, and ¼ cup of 5% distilled white vinegar. This step is important because it kills off the mold spores and other harmful bacteria. After soaking for two minutes, the berries should be rinsed well in a colander. It is important to set a timer and not let the berries soak longer than two minutes. Do not try to use this time to get other tasks done because it’s easy to forget about them. If they soak too long it will prevent them from staying fresh in the refrigerator.

After soaking and rinsing, lay them out on a clean kitchen towel to dry until they are bone dry and there is no excess water on them.

Close up of freshly washed strawberries drying on a white towel on the counter.

If you’d like the full washing instructions for all the different types of berries, and many more produce items, check out my eBook bundle, I Bought it, Now What? You can read it on your Kindle or save it to your computer so that you can reference the PDF or even print it out to have your own book to grab when you get home from the grocery store and want to take care of your produce so your items last for weeks!

How to Wash, Dry, and Store Strawberries

Short and sweet instructions on how to make your strawberries last for weeks aka #StrawberriesInAJar

Check out the Instructions

Gallon-Size Mason Jar etched with The Cross Legacy filled with fresh strawberries.

How to Store Fresh Berries

After a few hours you can put the dry berries into a glass, airtight container. I use mason jars or other larger glass jars. I have found that glass keeps them fresh much longer than any type of plastic container. You can put a dry paper towel in the bottom of the container to catch excess moisture. As long as you follow these directions, your berries will last for weeks!

Can You Store Strawberries With Other Berries?

I never recommend washing or storing berries together. Some of them, such as blackberries and raspberries have a shorter shelf life, while blueberries stay fresh for a longer period of time – up to eight weeks. If they are mixed together in the same container, it will be hard to keep them fresh since they do not last the same length of time. Keeping separate containers of berries is your best option for keeping them fresh and reducing food waste.

Condensation in the Jar

Strawberries releasing their excess moisture in a gallon size glass jar with a lid causing condensation to build up inside the jar.

A little condensation in the jar is okay! As long as you followed my directions of only soaking the berries for two minutes and put the berries in the jar when they were bone dry, they will be fine.

If you put the berries in the jar when they were still wet, or you let them soak for more than two minutes because you used someone else’s instructions, they may end up fermenting. This is why following my specific instructions is key.

You can take a clean towel and wipe inside the jar if the condensation is bothering you, but a small amount of condensation in the jar should not be a problem. Another option is to take the lid off of the jar in the refrigerator for a couple hours and put it back on when the condensation has evaporated.

How to Freeze Fresh Berries

Frozen Raspberries laying on a White Towel

Frozen Berries in Vacuum Sealed Bags laying on a wooden table.

Berry season is a great time to stock up on fresh berries. You can keep them fresh longer in the fridge with mason jars or freeze them. Freezing them allows you to have berries all year long as a snack, for smoothies, or even making homemade jam with. If you’ve washed them correctly, you know they are safe to eat. This is a great way to enjoy berries all year long!