Is it possible to store chocolate in the refrigerator: rules and features of chocolate storage

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Chocolate is a very tasty product, but capricious. Many people know that it melts at high temperatures, and tend to hide it where it is cooler. Today we will figure out whether it is possible to store chocolate in the refrigerator. It turns out that the benefits that it will bring depend on the right choice of delicacy. If the conditions are not suitable, the tile will lose not only its presentation, but also its taste.

All the best for children

Often we buy this delicacy just for kids. So, we must choose the highest quality product. First of all, you need to pay attention to the packaging, which must be neat, contain information about the manufacturer, release date, expiration date and other data. The tightness of the packaging is another important point. It is she who allows the chocolate to retain properties throughout the shelf life.

Last check

If you bought a dessert, but are not sure of its quality, then simple steps will help you evaluate it. You don't need to be an expert to do this. You will need chocolate at room temperature. If you just returned from a hot street and brought the tiles with you, then postpone the experiment.

• Real chocolate always crunches when broken.
• At the break it is matte, without too much shine. There should also be no air bubbles (unless it's porous chocolate).
• Natural chocolate melts quickly on the tongue.
• If it does not melt well and behaves like “plasticine”, it means that extraneous fats were used in the manufacture, which should not be in the tile.

How long does dessert last

If the tile is wrapped in branded packaging, then such questions should not appear. It must have dates of release and storage. But they are not always correct. Often artificially inflated. This is one moment. Second: they can be interrupted at retail outlets. At the same time, storage conditions at different stages of implementation are far from ideal. And on wrappers for sweets, the shelf life is not indicated at all. It is only on the box, which remains in the store. Let's define the terms that the buyer can focus on:

• A dark chocolate bar lasts up to a year.
• Quality dairy is usually able to lie for 6 months. But modern stabilizers allow him to "live" up to 1 year.
• If sesame, nuts, raisins or cookies are added to the tile, then the termshelf life is reduced to 3 months.
• Natural white chocolate lasts 30 days. But special additives can extend this period up to 12 months.

That is, you need to buy sweet tiles in specialized departments, where you can be provided with quality certificates and documents on the timing of delivery of goods to the outlet.

Attention to packaging

Before we get straight to the question "Can I store chocolate in the refrigerator?", let's say a few more words about the packaging, because this is the key point. Have you noticed that each tile is sold in a foil wrapper. In addition, on top it is closed in a box made of thick cardboard or special paper. Why such difficulties? Definitely not for beauty.

Chocolate is afraid of direct sunlight and oxygen. It can be spoiled by high humidity, and an extraneous smell is also harmful. Sealed packaging allows the dessert to lie for some time even under direct sunlight without consequences.

Conclusion

All of the above is directly related to the question of whether chocolate can be stored in the refrigerator. Packaging is designed to ensure the safety of product quality at room temperature. In the refrigerator compartment, the temperature regime and humidity are completely different. But there are certain requirements that still have to be met.

1. Ideal conditions are indicators in the range of +18…+20 °C. That is, you do not need to store chocolate in the refrigerator at all, it lies perfectly.and just in the closet.
2. It should be stored wrapped in foil. After breaking the integrity of the package, you should use the tile within a few days.
3. Never put a sweet bar on the same shelf with spices and fragrant herbs. Even packed, it is able to draw in extraneous odors.

Keep warm

Sweet treat loves to melt in your mouth. But in the hot summer it is best to remove it from the table if the direct rays of the sun fall on it. Under the influence of heat, the tile softens and begins to flow. Her taste changes quite a bit. Connoisseurs say that if chocolate is melted, it must be eaten immediately, otherwise the product will deteriorate. Of course, it would never occur to anyone to throw out chocolate, rather it will be put in the refrigerator. But if you repeat such a trick several times in a row, then the deterioration in quality will be obvious. And if it's hot summer, can you store chocolate in the refrigerator?

Cool place

If you brought tiles from the store, you can put them on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Nothing bad will happen, especially when it is very hot outside, and +2 ° C in the selected compartment. But if the room maintains the recommended temperature, then it is quite possible to leave the treat somewhere away from direct sunlight.

Worse, if the tile has already melted, and you decide to fix the situation by putting it in the refrigerator. In this case, the cocoa butter that is included in the composition melts. This leads tothe formation of a whitish coating on the surface of the tile after curing.

We have considered two points. But today, not everyone has refrigerators with a temperature control function in different compartments. And older models often produce much more cold than is required for domestic needs. Is it possible to keep chocolate in a refrigerator in which the temperature is maintained at -10 … -12 ° C? Not recommended as this will also result in a white coating on the surface. In this case, it is due to crystallized sucrose, which, after freezing the moisture, appears as a plaque.

Freezer

"Excuse me, - you say. - If we have considered in such detail why it is impossible to store chocolate in the refrigerator, then everything is already clear with the camera." But not everything is so simple. During fast freezing, several other processes occur. Therefore, if you place the tile in a freezer where the temperature is kept within -18 degrees, then it can safely lie there for several years. The main thing is to gradually lower the temperature. First, we shift the tiles to the refrigerator, then to the side door, then to the windowsill and onto the table. Important! Chocolate can only be frozen and thawed once.

Instead of a conclusion

Let's sum it up now. Why shouldn't chocolate be kept in the refrigerator? The photo above shows us a tile with a white coating that looks unappetizing. There are two reasons for its occurrence:

• "Fatgraying." If the tile thawed, and then you put it in the refrigerator, the fats recrystallize. As a result, an unpleasant soft coating appears.
• "Sugar graying". It is caused by condensation that forms when chocolate is taken out of the refrigerator. Humidity condenses on its surface, and when moisture evaporates, a white coating remains. Often, the taste of chocolate deteriorates, as well as its structure, especially if the product is not of very high quality.

That is, chocolate most of all does not like strong temperature changes. Therefore, store it in an ordinary cabinet, protected from sunlight, at +20 ° C.