In the old days, when people were still young, farmers used to harvest fruits in their own gardens and make vinegar from them. They would then eat the fruits. However, some merchants used vinegar made from fruits and discovered that it contained toxins, so it was banned.
Farmers used to make vinegar themselves based on their generations of experience. It was simple, useful, and safe. They would bury the fruits in a container filled with rice to facilitate their quick ripening without becoming overripe or dry. If the fruits don’t ripen naturally, they may lose water, wither, or rot even before fully ripening, resulting in less tasteful fruits. Burying the fruits in rice is a method of accelerating their ripening without causing them to become moldy, dry, or contaminated.
Special fruits that often needed vinegar for ripening in those days were guava and persimmon.
The harvested fruits were cleaned and dried before being buried in the container filled with rice. Occasionally, people would check on the fruits, especially when having children around.
What is the purpose of the rice container for fruits?
The rice container keeps the fruits warm, especially during the winter season. Burying the fruits deep in the rice container helps maintain warmth, allowing the fruits to ripen faster. Additionally, the rice container effectively preserves ethylene gas (a gas released when fruits ripen). The gas doesn’t escape into the surrounding environment, and bacteria cannot penetrate the container, which ensures a faster, unaffected ripening process without concerns of spoilage or rotting.
There are many fruits that cannot be harvested when fully ripe because they would quickly spoil during transportation. Therefore, if you buy fruits like avocado, papaya, persimmon, etc., and they are not ripe yet but you want them to ripen quickly, you can bury them in the rice container, then place a ripe banana on top of them. The ethylene gas released by the ripe banana will accelerate the ripening process of the other fruits.
Aside from the rice method, there are other ways to naturally ripen fruits:
Using paper bags: Putting fruits in a paper bag and tying it up helps retain the ethylene gas produced by the fruits, allowing them to ripen faster. It’s important to leave a small opening in the bag.
Using apples and bananas together: Apples and bananas, especially when fully ripe, release a significant amount of ethylene gas, which can stimulate the ripening process of other unripe fruits. Therefore, placing ripe apples and bananas with unripe fruits, then covering them with a plastic bag or paper, will expedite the ripening process.
However, the rice method should not be used for fruits with delicate skins such as blueberries, cherries, grapes, or raspberries because they may become mushy in the rice container.
In addition to cooking rice and ripening fruits, rice can be used for these life hacks:
Rice for removing jackfruit sap on hands: An old remedy for removing jackfruit sap that is difficult to clean is to bury your hands in rice and rub them together. The rice bran will help dry the jackfruit sap, making it easier to clean.
Rice for cleaning rust on metal objects: Knives, scissors, or other metal objects with rust can be buried in rice and then rubbed together to effectively clean and polish the metal surface.
Rice for preserving eggs: In the old days, when refrigerators were not available, a useful method for preserving eggs was to bury them in rice. The rice grains help seal the pores on the eggshell, preventing bacteria from entering the eggs. Moreover, rice helps keep the eggshells dry, preventing them from becoming damp, which extends the shelf life of the eggs. When traveling, you can also bury eggs in a rice-filled container to minimize the risk of breakage.
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