No matter how fresh or juicy apples are when bought, they lose all their taste as soon as they turn brown, which happens soon after they are sliced. The browning of the fruit affects the taste, nutritional quotient and their appearance. Well, this happens due to oxidation.
The enzymes present in the apple reacts to oxygen in the air when the fruit is chopped or sliced. But there are a few tricks you can apply to prevent it from browning. Here’re some tips to prevent the browning of apples-
Dip in lemon juice
Dipping the apples in lemon juice is supposed to be one of the most common and oldest tricks to protect apples from oxidation. The lemon juice is high in citrus content and acidity and has low pH. This will slow down the browning process of the apple. Often, store-bought apples are treated with citric acid, sulfites or ascorbic acid to keep them white.
Salt water solution
In one cup of water, add less than a quarter of a teaspoon of salt and let the slices soak for a few minutes to stall the oxidation. It may help keep your apples fresh and should not affect the flavour much due to an extremely small amount of salt present in the water. You can also prefer to wash or give it a rinse under a running tap before munching on it.
Honey
Honey consists of a substance called peptide which prevents the apple from turning brown and prevents oxidation. Just wash and slice your apples as you normally do. Then, in a cup of water, mix two tablespoons of honey. Keep the fruit pieces submerged in the honey mixture for just three to four minutes and not more than that. Take them out, rinse them and eat them or save them for later consumption.
Use soda
Soda too prevents the browning of apple flesh. Make a solution by adding lemon juice, lime soda and ginger juice in a glass bowl. Now, dip the slices in it and leave it in for three to five minutes. Take it out and store it in an air-tight container.
