Smarter: What Foods Don’t Need to Go in the Fridge?

Bread: 
I didn’t know this before, but it turns out you probably shouldn’t refrigerate bread because it can go stale faster than if you stored it in a breadbox, a kitchen cabinet, or someplace dark and cool.

If you don’t think you’ll use up your loaf in four or five days, freeze some and it will keep up to three months. You can take a slice or two out of the freezer when you need it and let it thaw at room temperature or pop it straight into the toaster. 

Butter:
Butter is surprisingly hardy, and if you want to have soft butter available anytime, keep it covered on the counter. But be sure to use it within two days.

Potatoes:
If you refrigerate your potatoes, they may develop a sweet taste because the starch turns into sugar at lower temperatures, says Trisha Calvo, CR’s health and food deputy editor who has been covering food, nutrition, and food safety for over 25 years.

So instead of putting them in a fridge, store your potatoes in a cool, dark place with good ventilation. 

Tomatoes:
Your tomatoes can lose their flavor and aroma—and become dull and mealy—in a fridge. But the question of whether you should refrigerate them depends on the state of their ripeness, says Amy Keating, a registered dietitian and CR food tester. 

If your tomatoes are underripe, leave them at room temperature. Once they’re at their peak, ripe condition, however, it’s okay to store them in the fridge for a few days to slow down the ripening process. They may taste better if you let them come back up to room temperature before eating.

Onions and garlic:
Onions and garlic don’t need to be in the fridge, Amy says. For onions, keep them in cool, ventilated areas away from the sun and they can stay good for up to four weeks. Garlic can be stored in cool, dry places for over five months if kept whole and unpeeled.

Coffee beans:
If you refrigerate your coffee beans, they might absorb the odors and moisture of the fridge. No thank you to that. That’s just nasty.

Keep a week’s supply in an airtight container somewhere cool and dark. You can also put them in freezerproof packages for up to a month.

What foods do you usually not refrigerate? Let me know. And if your fridge is giving you trouble and you don’t know whether to fix it or replace it, here’s a tool we designed based on costs and depreciation rates that will help you make the right choice.