How long do bananas last

A green banana stays on the counter. Keep the stem up, and do not jam the bunch into a closed bag. FoodKeeper does not print a day for this column; it says Until ripe. When the colour is the one you want, move it to the fridge. The printed time for a ripe banana is 3 days. The bold number is three days. In the fridge the peel darkens. That darkening on its own is not spoilage. Do not put a green banana in the fridge to ripen it. This page does not write a separate fridge day for a green banana. If you rinse the peel, do it just before you eat. Do not store it wet.

The moment you cut it, no separate day is printed. Keep the cut face in a closed box in the fridge. A ripe banana gives off ethylene. Do not shut apples or strawberries in the same closed box. That is not a time. A sooner date on the pack wins. Date types are on the use-by and best-before guide. The map of the fridge is in the fridge article.

Get perishable food into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking it or bringing it home, and within 1 hour if the kitchen is above 32°C (90°F). USDA FSIS and Turkey’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry both publish that cutoff. A closed deep pot stays warm; a shallow box cools.

A chart is a window, not a verdict on the container in your hand. A sour smell, a slimy surface, or mould means it is finished, even on day one. This page is not medical advice.

• Mould on the peel or in the flesh. A peel darkened by the fridge is not mould.
• An alcohol or fermented smell. The banana’s own sweet smell is not that.
• Leaking, sticky liquid, or a collapse inside.
• Sugar spots on a ripe banana do not finish it on their own. Smell and mould decide.

A black peel, with the inside still firm and the smell ordinary, does not finish that banana. A bruise on its own, with no mould, can be cut away and used.

Peel it, portion it, press out the air, and freeze it closed. FoodKeeper prints the freezer as 2–3 months. The short end of that window is two months. The ministry caps fruit at 6 months. The line is not named banana. The two writings do not match. The bold number is the shorter one, 2–3 months. The months are about quality. USDA says food held continuously at −18°C (0°F) stays safe.

Thaw in the fridge. Do not refreeze what has thawed. A frozen banana is for a smoothie or a batter. The texture of a fresh banana does not come back. Freezing a whole banana in its peel is not what this row recommends.

Thaw in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Do not refreeze a portion that has thawed. The ministry states the same rule: thaw frozen food in the fridge and take out only what you will eat.

• A banana lasts a week in the fridge. FoodKeeper prints 3 days for a ripe banana. The bold number is three days.
• A black peel finishes the banana. A peel darkened by the fridge is not spoilage. Mould and a fermented smell decide.
• The ministry’s six months is a use-by date for bananas. That line is a fruit ceiling, and it is not named banana. FoodKeeper prints 2–3 months. The bold number is the shorter one. The months are about quality.

The windows assume a generally healthy household. Pregnancy, young children, older age, or a weakened immune system are reasons to keep the shorter figure, to skip raw or undercooked food, and to reheat leftovers until the centre is steaming. USDA’s figure for reheating leftovers is 74°C (165°F).

Heating a mouldy banana does not undo mould. In pregnancy, for young children, in older age, or with a weakened immune system, do not sort mouldy flesh by tasting it. A black peel, with an ordinary smell, is not mould. If there is a fermented smell or a leak, that banana is finished. A banana is not raw meat. A mouldy one is still not rescued by a cake.