I often see this technique suggested as a way to speed ripening. Why does it?
Also, is there any data available on how fast it ripens comparatively?
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6 Answers
The ripening itself is caused by ethylene gas released by the food, which is trapped by any kind of bag.
As far as I know, there's nothing inherently special about a brown paper bag, other than the fact that it's porous and thus still allows some air to get in and out. Plastic ziplock bags have no ventilation, so they don't work nearly as well.
Placing fruit in a bag will help hasten the ripening for only a few fruits. Most fruits will not ripen (ever) once they have been picked. The only fruits that ripen once they're picked are bananas, avocados, pears, mango, and kiwifruit. Ripeness in fruits is based on sugar content, not color, thus most tomatoes in grocery stores have no flavor because they were picked green and exposed to ethylene gas to induce color change. Tomatoes are what are known as a "climacteric fruit" which means they'll change appearance based on climactic conditions but they don't ripen. Yes, they continue to soften but that's simply the process of cell deterioration know as decomposition.
Some fruits such as peaches, plums, etc. will seem to develop more sweetness as they sit on the counter but that's because they're also losing moisture and the residual sugars are concentrating in the cell walls.
Placing fruit in a paper bag helps to concentrate the levels of ethylene gas which is what helps induce the ripening of the above mentioned fruits (bananas/avocados, etc.). In fact, avocados and pears must be picked in order to ripen. Pears that are left on the tree will simply rot. As mentioned previously... brown paper bags used to be something everyone had around their house so it was a commmon item before the switch to plastic bags.
Have you ever noticed some people like red bell peppers and not green ones? The reason is due to ripeness.
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6If you're going to make the statement that only bananas, avocados, pears, mango and kiwi ripen after picking you should provide some reference. Everyday experience, a quick google and check of reputable sources, and common sense indicate otherwise.– hobodaveCommented Jul 17, 2010 at 4:41
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8@Hobodave: Reference re: Ripening "On Food & Cooking" by Harold McGee, Scribner, revised edition 2004, Chapter 7, page 350-353. Page: 353 "nonclimacteric fruits like pineapples, citrus fruits, most berries, and melons don't store starch or improve markedly after harvest, so their quiality depends on how far they had ripened on the plant." "With just a few exceptions (pears, avocados, kiwis, bananas), even climacteric fruits will be much better if they're allowed to ripen on the plant, from which they can continue to accumulate the raw materials of flavor until the harvest." Commented Jul 17, 2010 at 4:51
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1Interesting. I'm finding conflicting information all over the place. seasonalcooking.suite101.com/article.cfm/fruit_ripening_stages has a list of fruits that fall into different categories (it has it's own references). Yet lancaster.unl.edu/food/ciqaa.shtml seems to conflict with the first source by saying peaches and apricots ripen. :-\– hobodaveCommented Jul 17, 2010 at 5:02
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6Re: the listing showing Apricots as ripening.. "On Food & Cooking" 2004 edition, p. 352 Howard McGee offers a chart highlighting Fruits and their potential for improvement after harvest. the only ones that he lists for improving on sweetness are: Apples, pears, Banana, Mango, Kiwi but he does list others as improving in Aroma and Softness (which again softness is part of deterioration anyway). Among those listed as improving in aroma and softness: apricot, peach, plum, blueberry, raspberry, cantaloupe, honeydew, cherimoya, guava, papaya, passionfruit, avocado, persimmon, tomato. Commented Jul 17, 2010 at 5:19
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1The paper bag trick didn't work for an unripe mango I had. After a couple days in the bag, it developed dark/black spots where it was starting to rot, and the rest of the mango was still unripe. Commented Nov 16, 2014 at 9:24
The secret is that the fruit produces ethylene (a hormone found in plants), and ethylene promotes ripening. By placing fruit in a paper bag the ethylene collects (rather than dispersing in the room), increasing the concentration around the fruit and speeding ripening. About.com has an interesting article on ethylene and fruit ripening called Fruit Ripening and Ethylene Experiment.
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1This part I knew. But, why brown? Why paper? Why not a white paper bag? or a plastic bag? or a bread box?– hobodaveCommented Jul 9, 2010 at 20:03
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2As a clarification, paper bags are better than plastic because they allow some airflow. More info here - state.nj.us/jerseyfresh/howtoripen.htm– KiesaCommented Jul 9, 2010 at 20:06
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2To the best of my knowledge it's really just tradition. I've used cloth bags before as well. The keys are to keep the ethylene near the fruit, but not to seal it up too tightly (such as in a plastic bag) so that it can still breath and doesn't sweat. Commented Jul 9, 2010 at 20:07
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6@hobodave : white paper bags are more likely to be treated to make them smooth to the touch (I think they use clay?), which can make it less easy to allow air through. Also, brown paper bags used to be a pretty commonly available thing, before most grocery stores switched over to plastic bags.– JoeCommented Jul 13, 2010 at 22:07
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2@Joe - to get paper white, it also has to have been bleached, which alters its fiber structure– warrenCommented May 15, 2015 at 21:53
More importantly, brown paper bags allow moisture to pass through, so you don't get condensation that will accerate mold growth. Just leave produce on your counter in a plastic bag and witness the flexible petri dish!
White would probably work if it is porous enough.
Some types of fruit ripen with increased ethylene production and a rise in cellular respiration (the ripening fruit draws in oxygen and gives off ethylene). This happens in "climacteric fruit": Apples, bananas, melons, apricots, and tomatoes, among others (citrus, grapes, and strawberries are non-climacteric--you can do a search for "climacteric fruit" to see which are and which aren't).
The ethylene produced during respiration enhances the ripening process so when we put climacteric fruit in a paper (or plastic) bag, "none" of the ethylene can escape, thereby exposing the fruit to more and more ethylene as it continues to ripen. Paper bags only restrict oxygen flowing in/out of the bag while plastic prevents essentially all oxygen flow. Since climacteric fruit need oxygen for respiration, closed plastic bags will limit the amount of respiration to that allowed by the oxygen trapped in the closed plastic bag. Opening a plastic bag will allow some oxygen in (while letting some ethylene out)...in that case fruit will ripen faster with an open plastic bag than fruit just sitting on the counter but will ripen slower than in a paper bag because the paper keeps more ethylene in while still allowing oxygen in.
The short answer is that paper bags keep the ethylene trapped in the bag which enhances the ripening process while at the same time permitting some oxygen to enter the bag, allowing the fruit cells to respirate and produce more ethylene. Assuming brown paper bags are the same as other paper bags, then this should be true for brown paper bags as well.
I've never heard this, but ripening is usually sped up by various airborne chemicals functioning as plant hormones. This is why one bad apple will cause others to go bad - it is signalling them. So I suspect it is either a matter of enclosing the airborne chemicals, or that paper bags release some such chemical.
answered Jul 9, 2010 at 20:00
