8 Vegetables You’re Probably Washing Wrong

The natural nooks and crevices in broccoli and cauliflower are the perfect hiding spots for dirt, germs, and even little bugs. Get your cruciferous veggies squeaky clean by filling a sink with cold water and then soaking them for a few minutes. Then, gently lift them out of the water, place them in a colander, and rinse again under a stream of more cold water.

Take special care when cleaning these leafy gems; their tight tiny leaves are perfect for hiding little critters and the smallest traces of dirt. Get them ready for your plate by placing the sprouts in a bowl filled with warm water and letting them soak for about 10 minutes — this will flush out the dirt and any lurking pests.

The long stalks of green onions can become little tubes of dirt. Get them clean by removing any wilted or discoloured bits and then rinse them under cold running water, being careful to fill and drain the stalks, where most of the grit lives.

If you’re ordering a mountain of mushrooms from your local grocery store or farm, there’s always a visible amount of dirt hanging on the surface. Resist the urge to dunk them in a sink full of water and instead, use a clean, moist dishtowel or mushroom brush to gently remove the dirt, only rinsing very quickly under running water if you’ve got a really gritty one. Otherwise, the highly absorbent vegetable will sponge up water and you’ll end up with soggy ‘shrooms.

The thick, waxy skin on peppers means they need a little extra attention when cleaning. To lift some of that oily residue, run them under cold water and follow through by giving them a good scrub with the rough side of a clean sponge or brush.

Just because you’re peeling your carrots and potatoes doesn’t mean they don’t need a bath — like a serious Turkish-style, scrub-down clean. A proper soak in cold water and then a healthy buffing will help release any dirt clinging to the rough skins.

Your salad should be crunchy, but not because of dirt. To make sure you don’t commit the ultimate salad-killing sin, soak leafy greens in a bowl of cold water for two minutes before rinsing them under cold running water to remove any trapped dirt or germs.

Inside the layers of leeks lays a surprising amount of trapped dirt. To get rid of it, slice the leeks in half lengthwise and then soak them in a sink or pot filled with cold water. Then, rinse again under cold water, gently lifting the layers to ensure all the dirt is removed.