How to Store Onions, Potatoes and Garlic (and Why Onions and Potatoes Should Not Share a Bin)

Step by step

1. 1

   Pick a cool, dark, airy spot

   Look for a pantry shelf or cabinet that stays cool and has some air moving through it. Potatoes USA says to skip the spot under the sink, next to appliances like the stove, and any sunny counter.

2. 2

   Put the potatoes in a dark, airy bin without washing them

   Set the potatoes in an open bin, basket or bag that lets air in but keeps light out. Do not wash them until you are ready to cook, because Potatoes USA says dampness makes them spoil early.

3. 3

   Keep potatoes out of the fridge

   Cold turns some of a potato’s starch into sugar. That gives it a sweet taste, and it can make the potato darken when you cook it. A cool cabinet is the sweet spot, not the fridge.

4. 4

   Put onions in their own basket or mesh bag

   Keep regular yellow, white and red onions in a separate basket or mesh bag, in a dry spot with air around them. Keep them away from the potatoes.

   What it looks like: firm, dry onions sitting loose with room around them.

1. 5

   Keep sweet onions in the fridge

   Sweet onions are the mild ones sold in late summer and early fall. Purdue Extension says to store them loose in the fridge, where they keep for a few weeks.

2. 6

   Keep whole garlic bulbs dry and in the open air

   Leave the garlic bulb whole and set it in a dry, airy spot at room temperature. Break off cloves only as you need them. Garlic’s smell moves easily to other food, so give it its own little bowl.

   What it looks like: a firm bulb with dry, papery skin. Once a bulb feels soft or light, it is past its best.

3. 7

   Check both baskets once a week

   Pull out anything that has gone soft, moldy, shriveled or wet. Cut small sprouts off firm potatoes, and use sprouting onions soon, because Purdue says they go downhill fast once they sprout.

When it will not work, and what to do instead

If your onions or potatoes still go bad early, one of these is usually why.

• The potatoes turned green. Light got to them. For a little green, cut it away before cooking, as Potatoes USA says. Store the rest somewhere darker.
• The potatoes are sprouting. They are too warm, or just getting old. Cut away the sprouts and any green, then move the rest to a cooler spot.
• The potatoes taste sweet or cook up dark. They were probably kept too cold, like in the fridge. A cool cabinet works better.
• The onions are rooting or rotting. The air is too damp. Move them to a drier spot with more air, and keep them away from the potatoes.
• The garlic went soft and spongy. USDA’s handbook says whole bulbs go soft after a month or two at room temperature. Buy smaller amounts more often.

Why it works

Here is what is going on. Potatoes, onions and garlic are all still alive in your pantry, resting until they get a signal to grow. Your job is to keep them resting.

Potatoes react to three things. Light turns them green, warmth makes them sprout, and cold turns their starch into sugar. A cool, dark cabinet keeps all three away.

Onions and garlic rest best when the air is dry. Damp air wakes them up, so they grow roots and can start to mold. Think of a sleeve of crackers left open on a humid day. It goes soft, while the same crackers stay crisp in dry air.

So many of us keep onions and potatoes together in one bag, because that is how a lot of us were taught. Then one day you reach in and find a soft, sprouted onion and a potato that has turned green.