How to remove pesticide residues from vegetables

Nowadays people use pesticides when growing vegetables. Do we have to eat vegetables sprayed with pesticides every day?

There are several simple ways to remove pesticide residues on vegetables and fruits at home:

Soaking and washing method:

The main types of pesticides that contaminate vegetables are organophosphorus insecticides, which are difficult to dissolve in water. This method can only remove some of the contaminated pesticides. However, water washing is the basic method to remove other dirt and residual pesticides on vegetables and fruits, and is mainly used for leafy vegetables, such as spinach, day lily, chives, lettuce, and Chinese cabbage. Generally, water is used to wash away surface dirt first, and then soak in clean water for no less than 10 minutes. Fruit and vegetable cleaning agents can increase the dissolution of pesticides, so a small amount of fruit and vegetable cleaning agents can be added during soaking. After soaking, rinse with running water two or three times.

Alkaline water soaking method:

Organophosphorus pesticides decompose quickly in an alkaline environment, so this method is an effective measure to remove pesticide pollution. It can be used for all kinds of vegetables, fruits and melons. The method is to first rinse the surface dirt, soak it in alkaline water (usually add 5 to 10 grams of alkaline noodles to 500 ml of water) for 5 to 15 minutes, and then rinse it with clean water 3 to 5 times.

Peeling method:

There is a relatively large amount of pesticides on the surface of vegetables and fruits, so peeling is a good way to remove residual pesticides. It can be used for apples, pears, kiwis, cucumbers, carrots, winter melons, pumpkins, zucchini, eggplants, radishes, etc.

Storage:

Pesticides can slowly decompose into harmless substances over time during storage. Therefore, the amount of pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables that are easy to store can be reduced by storing them for a certain period of time. This is suitable for fruits and vegetables that are not easy to rot, such as apples, kiwis, and winter melons. Generally, they can be stored for more than 15 days. It is also recommended not to eat newly picked unpeeled fruits immediately.

Heating method:

Carbamate pesticides can decompose faster as the temperature rises. Therefore, some vegetables and fruits that are difficult to treat by other methods can be heated to remove some pesticides. Commonly used for celery, spinach, Chinese cabbage, cabbage, green pepper, cauliflower, beans, etc. First wash the surface dirt with clean water, put it in boiling water for 2 to 5 minutes, then take it out and wash it once or twice with clean water.