When you think of a ripe, delicious banana, you probably imagine a cheery yellow exterior and a blemish-free fruit inside. But what do you do when your banana starts to become TOO ripe? You know, when you start to see more and more spots crop up on the peel and the fruit is beginning to bruise.

Sadly, many of us would say, “Oh, I just toss them out when they get like that,” which is a huge waste of perfectly good fruit! True, the fruit might not look perfectly good in the moment, but if you try this trick, it will be for another day.

How do you stop the rotting of really anything, including your spoiling banana? You freeze it!

As soon as you spot a banana getting spotty, peel it right away. Chop up the banana (you can take out the nasty, bruised parts if you want) and put the pieces in a bowl. Use a fork or a masher to create kind of a banana paste, then put the mashed fruit into a Ziploc bag.

Flatten out the mashed banana until it’s flat and then close the bag tight, with as little air in it as possible. Storing the banana flat like this will help it freeze fast and thoroughly, and it will also help it defrost quickly, too. Finally, throw the bag in the freezer to let it do its thing!

You can let it freeze for up to six months (the One Pot Chef suggests six months, no more, no less) and then pull it out when you’re finally ready for a little banana magic.

And what can you with this bag of frozen banana? So many things! Use pieces of this frozen banana to make the smoothest shakes, the yummiest banana smoothies, and even in baking – try this frozen fruit hack to make banana muffins and bread in a pinch.

So, the next time you’re wrinkling your nose at a browning banana, don’t throw it away! Whip out the Ziploc bag instead and store it for a rainy day.

What do you think of this way of extending the life of your overripe bananas? Make sure to share your thoughts on this hack and any clever ways you keep fruit around for longer with us.