If you love to eat cookies or any other similar food, you perhaps know the taste of molasses. Molasses is one of the hardy substances, which we can use to add some sweetness to any food. Many people also use it as an additive and as a component of alcohol; there are many other applications of molasses, and it is believed that molasses contains lots of nutrients.
However, you may get molasses in syrup form also. While sugarcane is crushed and heated, syrup of cane is produced. A subsequent boiling produces molasses. But, as one of the consumers of molasses, you have to know how long this product can remain fresh and how to store it rightly.
Molasses has a huge amount of saccharose in addition to some useful inorganic compounds. Because of some useful contents, you may think that molasses has a quite longer shelf life.
However, will it really remain fresh for many years? Unfortunately, it may remain so in this condition. In fact, shelf life of this item relies on the proper storage system. Thus, we must start our discussion on how to preserve molasses in the right way.
How to store molasses?
Molasses possesses some remarkable properties. This may turn out to be as dense and thick as some tree sap. You may also use it with stability parallel to simple maple syrup. Application of coolness and warmth along with a light amount of care may allow your molasses to remain intact for long time. When you don’t make use of molasses on a daily basis, it is best to store it inside the refrigerator for its preservation. However, you will need to ensure that the setting of your refrigerator is one, which is helpful to store your molasses.
Only be sure that you have taken the molasses out of your refrigerator almost thirty minutes before you want it, and it may allow the product to get heated and turn out to be more flexible. Generally, heat may cause the growth of microorganisms and particularly mold on your molasses. Thus, placing your molasses above your room temperature level or getting it stored in a hot place (under direct sunlight) may lessen the practical shelf life of a bottle of molasses.
In addition to it, if you allow high amount of air circulation, it may also lead the molasses to become dried and become almost indigestible. The foremost way in which you may make out that molasses has become unpalatable is by seeing whether it can be poured well under room temperature. Placing the lid on the jar of molasses is a simple step to keep the molasses in proper form and functional for an extensive time.
Moisture – One of the woes of molasses
Another major concern with which you have to manage while dealing with molasses is moisture. With the high amount of moisture, present in the atmosphere, mold may start growing very fast. Unlike the case of bread, molasses may not allow you to remove the mold. Moldy molasses may not be good for health. If the normal humidity of your house is higher than seventy percent, then you have to dehumidify it in some way or dry it in a particular device, which is able to deal with the job. Moldy molasses may not be enjoyable or tasty. The good fact is that most of the fridges may be able to keep down the level of humidity with no hassle.
How long your molasses may remain fresh?
Molasses may be preserved easily for a quite long period with no possible adverse impact. In fact, this is incredibly one of the long lasting foodstuffs, only if you are able to store this in the right way. There is yet not evidence that molasses has caused food poisoning to any person and it indicates that the safety of your family may not face any risk by consuming old molasses. Like some other kind of available baking related product, molasses never show you any use-by date on the label of its container. Though it may not become rancid very quickly and will remain fresh for many years continuously, you must store the molasses cautiously when you do not plan to utilize it fast and when you desire positive outcomes. Molasses may thus last for a number of years while it is rightly stored.
Has your molasses turned its form?
Molasses may be rotten eventually when you have left it out with no proper or adequate cover or if you have just attempted to leave it forever. Taste, smell and also appearance of molasses may inform you whether it is really bad for you. As it is expected to be in liquid form, a type of crystallization denotes that the molasses becomes transformed in terms of its quality.
You must also keep away from eating the molasses when it starts to put off some stink or begins to taste strange. While you, at first, buy a jar of molasses, you may try to taste it and then offer it an excellent sniff in order to make out how this has to be in true case. A mold, present on molasses or some modifications of the smell, look, and flavor always means that you have to throw it away. Besides, remember the fact that it may take a number of years to take place.
Overall, it can be concluded that as molasses has thick texture and rich color, many people believe that the product may remain in your kitchen cupboard with no spoilage for many years.
However, there is no definite answer that you can find to know if molasses can get spoiled. Some say that molasses may remain fine for about one or two years; however, in many instances, the shelf life is found to be five years. Please, keep in mind that when it becomes moldy, it may develop odor and odd taste. At that time, you must remove it from your cupboard.
