How Long Does Pizza Sauce Last in the Fridge?
You can’t have pizza without sauce.
Combine this with melting cheese and you’ve got yourself a memorable meal the entire family will love. Whether you’re using a sweet or spice tomato sauce, this is a ‘make or break’ ingredient. For this reason, you need to know the signs of when it’s gone bad. After all, if it’s spoiled and you use it on your pizza, you might as well toss your pie away!
More importantly though, how long does pizza sauce last in the fridge? Knowing the answer to this question will help avoid it from going bad. Consequently, serving your family, friends, and guests terrible pizza (not to mention it can make them sick too)!
Pizza Sauce Storage – What to Do?
You have two choices when it comes to stocking away pizza sauce.
Freezing the sauce in an airtight bag or spooning it into muffin tins is one way while pouring leftover sauce into a jar and keeping it in your refrigerator is another option.
Now you may be wondering how long this delicious condiment lasts once refrigerated – we’ll answer that question next!
Can You Leave It in the Fridge For How Long?
How long can you store pizza sauce safely? It all depends on the method of storage.
When refrigerated at 35–40 degrees F, a jar of pizza sauce typically stays good for 5–7 days. To extend its shelf life even further, you should always consider freezing it – this way it will remain fresh for up to 3 months!
If you need to defrost frozen sauce quickly and safely, here are your three best options: let it thaw overnight in the fridge, microwave or melt it in a small pot until smooth; alternatively place frozen sauce into a bowl with cold water – easy as that!
At What Temperature Does Your Pizza Sauce Go Bad?
It is essential to ensure that your pizza sauce remains below the critical temperature of 40 degrees F.
If it’s left out longer than two hours at a temperature above 40 degrees F, it could easily spoil – and if temperatures soar beyond 90 degrees F, then only an hour will suffice for contamination to occur.
Therefore, we recommend discarding your sauce as soon as possible; you don’t want yourself or any of your guests to become ill due to unsafe food conditions!
How to Know If Your Pizza Sauce Has Gone Bad?
Unsure if your pizza sauce has gone bad? Here’s how you can tell.
Look out for Mold
The most reliable way to determine a spoiled batch of sauce is whether it contains any visible mold.
This could be green, black, or white mold either inside the jar itself or on the lid – when present on the latter, this means that dangerous fungal filaments have likely spread throughout the contents.
Even when refrigerated foods such as sauces may remain safe at first glance; due to their high water content, they can become vulnerable to unseen fungal growth beneath surface-level molds – making them unsafe to consume even after scraping away what’s visible!
Funny Smell or Taste
The tell-tale signs of expired pizza sauce are easily spotted. If you notice a strange odor upon opening the jar, that’s your cue to throw it away. However, even if it smells alright but doesn’t taste as expected (i.e., sour, tangy, bitter), then discard it without hesitation!
Unusual colors in addition to a change in flavor can indicate an expiration date has been surpassed – trust your senses and don’t risk ingesting something potentially hazardous!
Broken Seals
If you’ve bought your sauce from the grocery store, but noticed that its seal is broken, it could be an indication of bad quality.
Be sure to watch out for these key indicators: a broken jar seal, dented or swollen can; bubbling foam appearing after opening it and the expiration date printed on the jar has passed.
In such cases, we urge you to throw away any suspicious jars and replace them with some fresh homemade sauce instead!
It’s Been Left Out for Way Too Long
To ensure that your opened sauce is as fresh and delicious as possible, make sure to keep it stored in the refrigerator between 35-40 degrees Fahrenheit. If you’re not planning on using it soon enough, store it in the freezer at 0 degrees!
Keeping track of how long a jar has been left out can save you from having to discard any spoiled sauce – so stay aware and avoid ruining your pizza night!
In Summary
With this guide, you now have the answers to all of your questions about how long pizza sauce lasts and what signs indicate that it has gone bad.
Don’t take any chances; if there is even a slight suspicion that your pizza sauce isn’t safe anymore due to any of the above-mentioned indicators, then get rid of it immediately!
After all, we don’t want our pizzas ruined or anyone getting ill as a result. Do not put yourself, family members, or friends at risk—play it safe!
