It's often useful to have a bunch of carrots hanging out in the back of your fridge or in the pantry. You can make them the star of a dish, use them in a stew, add them as a handy ingredient to something else, or snack on them while you cook. But if you forget to use them for too long, you may end up with a vegetable that's limp, rubbery, and wholly unappetizing.
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Like any other produce item, carrots are prone to spoiling. A key factor that can affect carrots' freshness is their moisture level. If carrots lose too much water, they tend to turn from crisp and crunchy to limp, mouldy and rubbery.
You may assume that wilted, limp carrots, having passed their freshness, cannot be used. However, unlike mouldy or rotten carrots, the wilted and limp carrots can become fresh once again.
This can be achieved by reserving their water loss by simply reintroducing them to a moist environment.
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How to revive limp carrots
According to a viral TikTok video posted by Lottie Dalziel, it is easy to return dehydrated carrots to their formerly crunchy state.
"Put them in some water for five minutes yes, this does work pull them out and they will be as good as gold," Dalziel says in the clip. Sure enough, the video shows a bendy, dry carrot emerging from its water bath looking fresh and firm.
Allrecipes supports this claim, noting that this carrot hack works best if you first cut off the tips of the vegetables before submerging them in water.
Soak the carrots in the fridge for at least an hour, and overnight for even better results.
According to Fine Dining Lovers, this trick works because carrots are made up of 86-95% water. When limp, dehydrated carrots are placed in water, they are able to absorb and replenish their supply via osmosis.