You might be tempted to snack on some vegetables and fruit fresh out of the garden, but dirty food can harbor a fair amount of harmful bacteria.In fact, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, this is the cause of 46 percent of bacteria-related illness.
Luckily, giving a wash to your produce with plain water certainly helps, though if you really want to kill those germs, there are a variety of easy do-it-yourself homemade vegetable washes that will help eliminate the possibility of getting pretty sick.
Basic Vegetable Spray
1 cup cold tap water
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Put the water, vinegar, and lemon juice in a spray bottle. Shake well. Spray on your produce, then rinse with tap water before using.
Baking Soda Vegetable Spray
1 cup cold tap water
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Put the water, baking soda, and lemon juice in a spray bottle. Shake well. Spray on your produce, then rinse with tap water before using.
Simple Vegetable Soak
4 cups cold tap water
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons salt
Put the water in a large bowl. Add the vinegar, and salt. Swish around until well mixed. Add the fruit and vegetables and let them sit for about 30 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water before using.
Berry Soak
4 cups cold tap water
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup salt
Put the water in a large bowl. Add the lemon juice and salt. Swish around until well mixed. Add the fruit and vegetables and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse gently under cold water before using.
Greens Wash
4 cups cold tap water
1 cup distilled white vinegar
Put the water in a large bowl. Add the vinegar . Swish around until well mixed. Add the fruit and vegetables and let them sit for about 2 minutes. Drain and rinse gently under cold water before using.
Stronger All-Purpose Spray
2 cups distilled white vinegar
2 cups undiluted hydrogen peroxide
Fill two different spray bottles with each ingredient (put vinegar in one, and peroxide in the other). First spray the fruits and vegetables with the vinegar. Follow up with a spray from the hydrogen peroxide. Rinse thoroughly under cold water before using.