Sanitizing Greens

[Susanwusan]

I was originally told to wash everything, even bananas before peeling them as you'd end up touching the inner fruit.  I went somewhere else to work and was told not to wash anything, fruit or salad, because "it could make things worse".  By this I understood that pathogens that had dried could be reactivated or simply spread around with the water.  I don't know really, does anyone else know about this not washing?  It's not the first time I've seen professional cooks not wash (even mushrooms) before using them.

[weinoo]

8 minutes ago, Susanwusan said:

It's not the first time I've seen professional cooks not wash (even mushrooms) before using them.

I don't want to jump to conclusions, but this sounds a little wrong.

[AAQuesada]

 I mean.. a lot of bagged lettuce has already been triple washed and i've never washed a banana in my life but I'll be honest. It sounds like pure laziness to me. Mushrooms, Leeks melons, strawberries anything grown in the dirt, outside really needs to be washed. If you don't want to wash your hydroponic watercress -you do you but not washing mushrooms is just gross imo

[Susanwusan]

Does anybody else leave peeled potatoes under running water for about ten minutes before using them?  This might be to do with potatoes peeled the day before and left in water to prevent discolouration.

[AAQuesada]

Depends really, russets tend to discolor quickly so keep them in water until ready to use. Running water only if i am trying to get the excess starch off -like as in potato chips.

 

Red, white, yukon tend not to discolor as fast so it more depends how long they will be stored

[weinoo]

7 minutes ago, Susanwusan said:

Does anybody else leave peeled potatoes under running water for about ten minutes before using them?  This might be to do with potatoes peeled the day before and left in water to prevent discolouration.

Peeled potatoes are often kept in water to, as you say, prevent discoloration; but I've never done the under running water trick.

[jimb0]

i don't care for the "i've never washed and i haven't gotten sick" arguments, as you hear the same thing about leaving the turkey on the back porch to thaw. with that said it's unlikely that a truly contaminated batch of greens is going to be sanitized in a fashion that neither leaves residue nor materially affects the product. if you are feeding immunocompromised sorts, simply blanch them to pasteurize. if not, a good wash with plain water will be sufficient.

 

i do have a bottle of the fruit and veg wash which is basically just a light, neutral soap; it only gets used to remove waxes from something where the peel might get eaten.