Chris, you're absolutely right. I love my Oksaka Vegetable Storage Containers...I have one for potatoes, one for onions and one for garlic...they're not very large and so they fit nicely in my tight space. Keeps everything fresh without producing those stinky 'gases'.

Ah-HA! I was so happy that I'd found the right size basket to store my root veggies, and instead all my onions sprouted and potatoes sprouted and turned green within a week in the basket. Now I know why.

McGee doesn't seem to talk about this, but he does note that potatoes will sprout and spoil quickly if stored above 50 degrees....I guess the corner where I thought it was cool and dark enough may be as much to blame for my potato troubles.

Great tip! I'm going to go move my onions now.

I learned something today. I, too, would be very interested in the science behind it. Where's Alton Brown when you need him?

What are Oksaka Vegetable Storage Containers, and where does one get them? (googling the term didn't turn anything up). I've known about the potato & onion thing, but have also wondered how far is far enough? right now, they are in neighboring, but separate, cupboards.

Don't bananas also encourage fruit to ripen more quickly? I've heard that bananas should be kept separate for the same reason.

It's Osaka containers and you can find them at chefscatalog.com

NAYY

Eliza,
Absolutely, and so do apples and pears. All these fruits (and probably others too) ripen by releasing fragrant aromas and the presence of these chemicals (my chem 101 eludes me right now) in the air hastens the ripening process.

The upshot? If you want to ripen avocados more quickly, put them in a paper bag with a ripening banana.

Ok, so I just looked at the Osaka containers. I'm not crazy about how they look, and I feel like they'd take up a lot of space on my counter.

What is it about the containers that work so well? Do the veggies need ventilation? Can I buy some plain ceramic jars that might stack or do the the containers need holes in them? Anyone know?

I happen to be a bad person who keeps both in the same crisper drawer in her fridge. I never have problems with them rotting or sprouting... Actually, onions and potatoes are on my list of dependable produce that won't spoil on me before I get around to eating them. Go figure.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene#Ethylene_as_a_plant_hormone

i remember alton brown said to put root vegetables in sterilezed sand

just heat some play sand in your oven for a few hours to kill everything

but ceramic containers like osaka, probalby do about hte same thing

Ethylene gas is what's responsible for ripening fruit, like apples and bananas. They give it off as they ripen, ripening whatever is around them, so if you want some fruit to ripen faster you can put it in a paper bag with an apple or banana. Also, most of the products that you can put in your fridge and are supposed to retard food spoilage (like green bags, etc.) are impregnated with ethylene scavengers that bind up the ethylene and prevent it from acting on your fruits and veg.

I wonder if ethyleneis what's responsible for the onion/potato incompatibility?

I keep my onions and garlic in a stacking bamboo steamer basket (one level for shallots, one level for garlic, etc.) on my counter - it's dark and ventilated - and keep my potatoes in the garage. FWIW. I realize not everyone has a garage.