‘Tis the season for fresh berries. Whether you eat them by the handful, load them atop your strawberry shortcake, or slice them into your spinach salad, strawberries might be the most iconic berry when you think summer.
With strawberry consumption comes strawberry washing, and, as we’ve reported, washing produce isn’t a step to ignore. Produce can be contaminated with not only dirt but pesticides and often needs more than a quick rinse. If you’ve been on TikTok, you’ve probably seen videos of people soaking their berries in water mixed with vinegar, baking soda, or salt. But what’s the best way to clean fresh strawberries?
To find out, I went to the Delish team and some other expert sources. Here, you’ll find the most common methods to get those strawberries squeaky clean. Use the process that works best for you and what you’re cooking.
Get Out That Salad Spinner
First, submerge the berries in a bowl filled with water. Use your fingers to gently rub each berry. Lift the berries out of the bowl and into a paper-towel lined strainer. Spin at least twice. The key is to thoroughly dry your berries after washing them if you are going to refrigerate them; they should be as dry as possible. To store in the fridge, place them in a breathable paper-towel-lined container. They should last this way up to three days.
Plain Water
Yes, plain water will do, according to MasterClass. But make sure you’re washing each berry individually rather than quickly running the carton under the faucet. A step above rinsing your berries under the faucet is soaking them in a bowl of cold water. After soaking or rinsing, thoroughly pat them dry with a cloth or paper towel. This method is great if you plan to eat them right away.
Water & Vinegar
This is a popular way to clean strawberries. Fill a bowl with about a 3:1 water ratio to white vinegar and let the berries soak for about 15 to 20 minutes. Rinse the strawberries with water and then dry them. Check out this TikTok video for a demonstration.
Water & Baking Soda
While one Delish staffer was not a fan of the water and baking soda method (it left her strawberries tasting very acidic—and a bit mushy), many people swear by it. MasterClass recommends 1 teaspoon of baking soda for every four cups of water. Soak the berries for about five minutes before rinsing and drying them.
Water & Salt
Lastly, you can add a bit of salt to a bowl of water to get your berries clean. Mix 1 teaspoon of salt for every cup of warm water and let the berries soak for five minutes before rinsing and drying.
Now check out our favorite strawberry dessert recipes like strawberry cheesecake bars and homemade strawberry cake. We even have a boozy strawberry daiquiri and a frozen strawberry margarita. Happy summer!
As a Contributing Writer, and former Associate Editor, at Delish, Allie is a writer, reporter, and producer of features at the intersection of food and culture. Before Delish, Allie worked for publications including Apartment Therapy and Insider. She even spent time working in restaurants and breweries. Allie has dumpster-dived in NYC to expose food waste, reported on the invasive lionfish you can eat, and wrote about the growing trend of weed weddings. Her health and nutrition stories on hydration culture, bananas, and coffee have generated nearly 2M combined views. She loves traveling, running, and eating her way through new places and even has a thorough Google Maps ranking system for her favorite restaurants and bars! When not writing about food, she’s planning her next trip, lifting weights, or training for a race. Expertise: food & culture (Sustainability, Health, Travel) Education: M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, B.S. in Information Science (User Experience Design) from the University of Michigan
