Cream cheese is a staple in many dishes found around the world and for good reason, the taste is amazing. But it can be confusing to understand how long cream cheese lasts. Does it matter if the container is opened? Or should you just take into account the expiration date marked on the container?
In this post, we’ll explore how long cream cheese lasts, how to tell if your cream cheese is bad, and ways to properly store your cheese to keep it fresher, longer. Let’s get started!
What is Cream Cheese anyway?
Cream cheese is a very soft, fresh kind of cheese which is made up from cream and milk that is used in many cuisines worldwide. It has a mild flavor making it a perfect addition to dishes looking to add some flavor and weight to their meal. It’s commonly found on top of bagels and in many casseroles.
As the name brand suggests, cream cheeses was started in the 1800s in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The additional feature that you will have from this product is that with the use of this product you can increase the taste of the item that you are cooking like if you are cooking soup and if you add cream cheese then the taste of the soup will increase.
So you need to know about the ingredients of the cream cheese and as the name is cheese, then you can easily understand that this product is made up of milk and you can find that in the container there is a level where you will find that at least 33% of milk is present in the cream cheese.
Pure cow milk is used in this product and that is why his product is very healthy and taste is also very good and you can feel that after you taste it. The moisture present in the cream cheese should never exceed the 55% limit.
There are several options we have in our hand to use cream cheese and one of them is when you are making soup that time if you add cream cheese, then the soup will become more delicious and you will understand the difference eventually.
In pasta sauce and ice cream also we can use the cream cheese and especially in the homemade ice cream, cream cheese plays an important role. In the pastries also you will find the cream cheese to make it more delicious.
Does Cream Cheese Go Bad? How Long Does Cream Cheese Last?
So from above, you can understand that how important cream cheese can be in your daily life and you can use cheese cream for different purposes and those purposes are firstly for the breakfast cheese cream is very important and the reason is cheese cream increases the deliciousness of the food and most of the application of cheese cream is seen in the baking purpose.
If you use the cheese cream every day, then it is fine, but if you do not, then one day you will find the container of the cheese cream and you will find that cheese cream container has crossed the expiry date and you did not notice.
Anyways, do not worry if something like that happened to you because it happens to most of the people and you do not have to reject that cheese all the time. You should know that due to the moisture the soft part of the cheese cream expires faster than the comparatively harder part of the cheese cream.
I can tell from here that now you are thinking how can you recognize that the cream cheese which has passed the expiry date is actually expired and there is no way that you can use it in your foods.
So from some signs you can understand that you can use cream cheese now and first and most important sign which you can easily understand is the color. You can see the color of the product from the outside and if the color changes, then you can easily understand that the cream cheese is no more.
Another way you can find it by the taste and if the taste of the cream cheese has changed, then you should not use it in your foods.
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How Long Does Cream Cheese Last in the Fridge?
So now you people are here and you all know that it is our basic instinct to keep all the foods in the refrigerator so that we can preserve that food more.
Same things we do with the cream cheese that you bought from the market. But you cannot preserve the cream cheese for a long time.
It depends on the shelf life of the cream cheese and it varies according to the containers provided by the company. The processing method of the cream cheese plays a huge role here and also the packaging is important if it can transfer heat or not.
The temperature of the refrigerator should keep under 40 ͦF and you can keep the cream cheese for about 3-4 weeks after you opened the seal of the container.
Therefore, it is best for you that use it before it crosses the expiry date. There is some cream cheese available in the market, which remains fresh up to six months in the refrigerator after you open it.
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How to Tell if the Cream Cheese Has Gone Bad?
Cream cheese is somehow a very delicate product as its expiry date varies according to the opening of the container.
So you need to keep the cream cheese safely and you need to finish it before it crosses the expiry date and most probably you can use it 2-3 weeks after it crosses the expiry date and that also depends on several factors.
Well, there are some points that will help you to understand if the product is in good condition or you cannot use it anymore,
- The first thing that you need to check if the cheese is looking okay then you can have it. So now the question arises how to differentiate between okay and not okay.
- It is very simple if you can see the mold is growing on the surface of the cheese, then you have to understand that it has expired completely and that cream cheese will not give you a creamy experience and although it is not good for your health also.
- You can find it out in different ways like if the cheese dries out and become hard then you need to understand that it is harmful for your health and you cannot eat that.
- Smell is also another indicator and if you smell a sour or moldy smell then you need to understand that the cream cheese is not in a good condition.
- Another factor is if you see some cracks or separation in the cream cheese, then you need to understand that you need to discard the cream cheese.
How to Store Cream Cheese?
From the above conversation you can understand that it is very important that you need to store the cream cheese properly and as it is a very delicate product then a small mistake can give you a lot of trouble.
It is not very difficult for you to store the cream cheese and all you have to do is to store it in a refrigerator and the temperature of the refrigerator should be under 40 ͦF and after opening it, the cream cheese will stay in the perfect condition for 3-4 weeks and after that it will start to spoil. If you eat the spoiled product then you will get some side effects.
So you need to store this product properly and for that you need to know some facts about the cream cheese. The normal cream cheese stays in perfect condition longer than the flavored and low fat cream cheese.
If you want don’t need the cream cheese, then do not try to open it because the shelf life of cream cheese is very important and if you open it as you all know it will stay in the perfect condition for 3-4 weeks and after crossing the expiry date you can have this product but that depends on the processing method of the cream cheese and also the quality of the container is also a factor.
After you open the container do not put it back in the refrigerator by wrapping the foil, but you need to keep it in an airtight container or you can also keep your cream cheese container in a resealable bag.
That is because when it comes in contact with air the spoiling of the product happens very fast and you cannot stop it until you perform this step. Be sure to store your cream cheese in an airtight container to ensure it lasts longer.
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Conclusion
We can agree that cream cheese is a very delicious product and it increases the taste of the product. However, it is somehow difficult to store the cream cheese as it starts to spoil after 3-4 weeks from opening the seal of the container.
Hence, you need to keep it in the refrigerator under 40 ͦF and also you need to keep it in an air tight container or in a resealable bag where you can save it from the external impurities.
You can understand if the cream cheese is in a good condition or not from the color and also from the smell. Keep these facts in your mind and live a healthy life with cream cheese.
