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My wife is always yelling at me for not putting the vegetables back into the crisper in the fridge. Does the crisper make a big difference vs. just putting vegetables in another part of the fridge? Or is it primarily helpful just in keeping it all organized?

Jason
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As stated by Jefromi back in a similar question;

The crisper provides a somewhat enclosed environment, which prevents moisture from escaping as rapidly. Vegetables keep best at a certain humidity, higher than that typically found in the rest of the fridge, but not so high that condensation starts accumulating on them. Vegetables kept in too-dry air in the rest of the fridge will tend to dry out and shrivel up faster; those kept in the crisper will retain their water and texture better, keeping them crisp.

Leafy vegetables are also much more prone to drying out, since they have much more surface area, while hardier vegetables with a decent skin on them (like bell peppers) don't dry out nearly as quickly. Fruits benefit somewhat from this as well, but don't generally need as high a humidity as vegetables.

Some crisper drawers have little sliders on them which vary the size of the opening to the rest of the fridge, letting you vary the amount of circulation and therefore the humidity; you can adjust this to suit what you tend to store in the drawer. If you have two crisper drawers, both adjustable, then it might be a good idea to put fruit and hardier vegetables in one, and more vulnerable vegetables in the other.

Also, by always putting vegetables in the crisper drawer, you can prevent potential cross contamination between foods i.e., the vegetables can never come in contact with raw meat, because they're all in their own separate drawer.

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chaosentity
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    In general, if you answer a question by copying an answer from another question, it's a good sign the question is going to be closed as a duplicate and you might as well say whatever you have to say on the original question. – Cascabel Mar 05 '13 at 20:30
  • Ah, ok, sorry about that. Should I add my extra comments to your response on the original question, or would that be redundant? – chaosentity Mar 05 '13 at 21:15
  • New information isn't redundant; you're welcome to edit my answer or comment on it. I personally wouldn't post a completely new answer in this case, but that's always an option too if you think it's a substantial contribution! – Cascabel Mar 05 '13 at 22:24