Be sure to wash your produce

Epicurious.com

If outbreaks of salmonella weren't enough of a reason to get you to wash your fruits and vegetables, maybe this photo will be.

I admit that I don't always wash my fruits and vegetables before I eat them, especially when I'm here at work. (My excuse? No space to keep a colander or a salad spinner at my desk.) But I am thankful that I did rinse my salad greens this particular time because as much as I need protein, I would prefer to ingest it in a form other than a ladybug*. And although the last time I found something in my greens-snails in a bunch of watercress-was many years ago, I'd like to minimize my chances of accidentally eating them. Lesson learned.

So what have you found nestled in your fruits and vegetables?

*The ladybug was not harmed while in my care and was released into the "wilderness" soon after.


Esther Sung

first joined Epicurious.com in 2006. Prior to this, she spent several years in book publishing, including at Harper Entertainment, where the proverbial three-martini lunch was sadly nowhere to be found. When not in the office, she moonlights at the Bottle Shoppe in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and through this she has developed a fondness for Syrah and Malbec. A quasi-vegetarian, she admits to having relished eating yuk hwe, a Korean raw beef dish.




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