How to know if my ingredients are still working?

The Struggle:

All ingredients must come with a “best if used by” date. This is obvious for things that are potentially hazardous like eggs or dairy. But what about ingredients that are dried or powdered? If freeze dried food can last up to 20 years does that mean all dry ingredients can last that long as well? All too often people call or write in and ask if their ingredients they bought a year ago are still good. Thankfully there’s a few things you can do to test ingredients on your own to see if they are still active. In this article I will look at the ingredients that may still work for years to come.

“ I bought this a while ago. Is it still good?” 

Sequester it

Before we get too deep into this, we must look at a few important aspects. If your ingredient is water-based we suggest strictly following the recommended use by date. A few things you need to ask yourself before considering an ingredient car. Does my ingredient still look like a free-flowing powder? Is it clumpy or are there signs of water damage? Were the ingredients stored in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight? If the answer to all these questions is no fat it might be a good ingredient to consider testing. For some reason the answer is yes to any of these it is best to discard it once it has reached the use by date.

The tests you will need to do are very simple. Let’s start with gelling and thickening agents. We do not suggest mixing this into a recipe as you want as few variables as possible. The best thing you can do is to mix these with plain water. We suggest a very simple mixture of 240 g (1 cup) of water to 2.4 g (~1 tsp) of the ingredients. This gives you a very simple one percent usage ratio which should work for all ingredients to see if they are active. For thickeners, all you need to ask yourself is; does the product still thicken? If so then the product is still active. For the gelling agent you will need to heat it to the recommended hydration point and allow it to cool. If you have discarded the package and you don’t know the recommended hydration point just bring the mixture to a boil. Once the mixture has cooled, if it creates a gel then it is still active. At this point you can still use them for your recipes.

For ingredients such as yeast you will need to conduct a different type of test. As long as the yeast has been stored properly and is free flowing it should be good to use. Once again any signs of water damage the product should be discarded. In 1 cup of water add 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 tsp of dry yeast. Mix this until it is all dissolved and allow it to sit for 10 minutes. If the mixture begins to bubble at the end of 10 minutes, it is still active. If you see no activity then the product should be discarded.

These tests can also be conducted if the product is new but does not seem to be working in your recipe. If you attempt a new recipe but the product seems inactive. You should test it on its own using the method above, to ensure that it is working properly. A common cause for certain ingredients to be rendered inactive is the pH level. We have discussed this thoroughly in another article which you could find at this link . If your recipe does not seem to have a low pH then we still suggest testing the ingredients on their own with plain water. Use this quick tips to make sure that your recipe and ingredients are all working properly. And until next time keep cooking!