Saving wrinkled carrots: this is how they become crunchy again

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Vivi makes it easy
This trick makes shriveled carrots crisp again

Shrinking carrots are really annoying. But they don’t have to end up in the bin. Food expert Vivi explains how they become crunchy again.

We all know the problem: bought a whole bunch of carrots, ate three of them straight away and the rest shriveled up in the fridge. This not only happens because you have too many carrots for your household, but also because fresh carrots don’t last forever. But watch out! Stop wasting food, because shriveled carrots do not have to end up in organic waste. With a simple trick, the colorful turnips become crisp and fresh again overnight, as if by magic. Sounds like a miracle? But it is not. I’ll tell you now how that works.

Almost like magic: The carrot trick

But now I’ve exhausted the arc of suspense quite a bit, and the trick is actually so simple. All you need for that is a bowl – better yet, a flat casserole dish – and tap water. Now put the shriveled carrots in the jar and fill it up with enough water to completely cover the beets. Now all you have to do is wait a few hours. It is best to leave the carrots overnight or for a day and then they are crisp again as before.

Tip: Of course, this trick only works with undamaged carrots. They should not have any moldy or open spots. Brown spots, on the other hand, are not a problem. They disappear after peeling.

Why does this trick make carrots crisp again?

The reason carrots go limp in the first place is water loss. Then Carrots are almost 90 percent liquid, which, among other things, ensures that they are nice and plump and crisp – similar to our skin. If you now put the carrots in a water bath overnight, this can penetrate through the semi-permeable cell membrane back into the cells of the beet and ensures elasticity and crunchy vegetables. This magic is called osmosis in technical jargon.

Carrots are a superfood: That’s why you should eat them more often

Aside from this little magic trick, carrots can do much more wonderful things: they are packed with valuable things vitamins, fiber and minerals. Among other things, they supply our body with Beta-carotene, which is converted to vitamin A in the body and this is important for eye health. According to various studies, beta-carotene even protects our cells from cancers such as colon, prostate and breast cancer.

Carrots are also very low calorie and can be used in many ways in the kitchen. Whether raw for carrot salad recipes, processed in carrot soup recipes or baked as a carrot and pumpkin tart tatin, sweet in carrot muffins, carrot cake or the American carrot cake, there are simply countless carrot recipes.

Vivi’s top tip

This water trick doesn’t just work great for carrots. Also shriveled beets, radishes or kohlrabi can be conjured up crisply again. And if you want to keep your carrots crunchy for a really long time, try our Fermented Carrots recipe.

Bridget