Can you freeze Crisco?

[philso]

anything with high oil content will eventually go rancid, especially after being opened. that said, something like shortening is usually ok for about 1/2 year or so at room temp. i don't use shortening much, other than greasing pans, so a small container lasts pretty long. summers can get pretty hot and humid here, and i have had shortenings go bad stored at room temp. it takes like maybe a year or so, though.

expatgirl - for some reason i was thinking you wanted to freeze it in order to bring it on the plane, which is why i said that there was no real reason to. shortening will generally be fine in the fridge for at least a year, and indefinitely in the freezer.

as far as baking goes, i always use butter. i don't think that there is that much of a health factor advantage. i tend to just try and limit fatty foods in general. butter makes a better quality (flakier) pie crust. also, to my thinking, i wouldn't butter my toast with crisco, so why use it for other things?

[Corey123]

My cakes and cookies, when I make them, are usually all-butter ones.


~Corey123.

[expatgirl]

Originally Posted by philso

anything with high oil content will eventually go rancid, especially after being opened. that said, something like shortening is usually ok for about 1/2 year or so at room temp. i don't use shortening much, other than greasing pans, so a small container lasts pretty long. summers can get pretty hot and humid here, and i have had shortenings go bad stored at room temp. it takes like maybe a year or so, though.

expatgirl - for some reason i was thinking you wanted to freeze it in order to bring it on the plane, which is why i said that there was no real reason to. shortening will generally be fine in the fridge for at least a year, and indefinitely in the freezer.

as far as baking goes, i always use butter. i don't think that there is that much of a health factor advantage. i tend to just try and limit fatty foods in general. butter makes a better quality (flakier) pie crust. also, to my
thinking, i wouldn't butter my toast with crisco, so why use it for other things?

Dear Philso,

Sorry for the confusion-----I will go ahead and substitute butter for recipes that call for Crisco and not worry about stuff going rancid in the future. Thanks again!!

[scott123]

All fats, Crisco included, will absorb odors. Freezer odors are some of the worst tasting odors one can come across. If you don't believe me, melt an old ice cube and drink it. Nasty!

I wouldn't recommend freezing Crisco. It's engineered to defy oxidation. I'm sure the expiration date is completely arbitrary and probably only calculated to drive more sales. It's like the expiration date on sour cream- ridiculous.

Store it in a cool place and it'll be fine for a lot longer than a year.

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by scott123

...It's like the expiration date on sour cream- ridiculous...

So if my sour cream is beyond the expiration date, I should just scoop out the green and blue fuzzy parts and use the rest?

I agree that if the Crisco smells OK it's still good beyond the date. I do not believe the date is arbitrary. It's probably geared to storage under the worst possible cinditions with a safety factor built in.

If it's rancid, You'll be able to tell. If it smells OK, it's good to go.

[Corey123]

Originally Posted by Andy M.

If you choose to refrigerate it rather than storing it at room temperature, I'm sure it won't be harmed.

Do you refrigerate vegetable oil?

Umm, as a matter of fact, yes, I did.

But it was olive oil, and olive oil tends to congeal (solidify) when cold. So I just try to keep it in a cool dark place away from heat and the sun.

The hall get pretty cold in the winter, so that's sort of like a fridge to keep the oil cool and rancid-free.


~Corey123.

[Andy M.]

My point was that Crisco is vegetable oil as is olive oil. If you don't refrigerate one, don't refrigerate the other.

[Corey123]

I use olive or canola oil only.


~Corey123.

[NightsinCalifornia]

I mean how long do you intend on freezing crisco ? Honestly if you are looking for a long, long haul..then you can't. It will go bad. However, if you want a short term solution you can do anything...

So, I gues you can freeze crisco..

[Corey123]

I've never froze shortening of ANY brand.


~Corey123.