How long can different types of soups be stored in the refrigerator, conditions and rules
How long does freshly made soup keep in the refrigerator? According to sanitary standards, no more than a day. The first dish can stay cold much longer. Usually soups are cooked for 2-3 days. After cooling, the pan is placed in the refrigerator, and before lunch, scoop out the required amount with a ladle and heat it on gas or in the microwave. Borscht does not spoil for a very long time, as it contains a number of preservatives - salt, sugar and vinegar.
General storage rules
For the preparation of the soup, use an enamel pot or a stainless steel frying pan. After cooking, the dish must be cooled. It is recommended to pour the cooked soup in a stainless steel or aluminum saucepan into a glass bowl. In case of prolonged contact with food, the metal oxidizes and changes the taste of food.
According to sanitary rules, cooked soup should be eaten within 3 hours. The modern pace of life and the lack of free time force many housewives to cook for future use. The soup pot can be refrigerated. If necessary, put a portion on a plate with a ladle and heat the dish in the microwave.
Basic rules for storing soup in the refrigerator:
- the optimum temperature is -2 ... -6 degrees below zero;
- before putting the soup in the refrigerator, it must be cooled;
- the dish should be stored in an enamel or glass container with a closed lid;
- do not leave a spoon or ladle in the pan;
- a portion must be recovered with a clean, dry ladle.
Some housewives pour the soup into plastic containers. These utensils should only be used if they are made of food grade plastic.
Cold Storage Standards
Soups are prepared in various broths: meat, fish, mushroom. Vegetable broth, kefir, milk, kvass can be used as the basis.
It is advisable to cook the soup for a day and eat it right away, as frequent servings of heating destroy the nutrients present in the ingredients.
Technologists advise for future use, that is, 2-3 days in advance, to cook only broth, and then cook a new dish on this basis every day. If it is not possible to cook fresh soup every day, after the end of cooking, put the pan to cool on a wooden stand, and then put the cooled dish in the refrigerator. In the refrigerator compartment, the soup will stay fresh for 1-4 days. It all depends on the ingredients included in the first dish.
Based on fatty meat broth
Beef soup with vegetables and grains can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days. You need to scoop out a portion with a clean, dry ladle.
Chicken with spices
Chicken soup spoils faster than beef soup. This first course can only be kept cool for 2 days.
With herbs and eggs
Sprinkled with herbs and eggs at the end of cooking, the soup should be eaten on the first day.Such a dish does not keep for a long time, it quickly deteriorates.
Mushroom
It is best to eat soup with mushroom broth on the first day. Over time, the taste of such a dish deteriorates. It is not recommended to store it for a long time. The maximum shelf life is 24 hours.
Fish
Ukha has an unmistakable taste only in the first hours after cooking. Such a dish is not prepared for future use. Fresh fish or canned fish soup is eaten on the first day.
Cheese
Cheese soup cooked in chicken broth, without spoiling, can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. True, after a while the taste of such a dish deteriorates. Better to eat it immediately after cooking.
Borscht
Borscht cooked in meat broth can be kept cold for 3 days. If the dish is cooked on chicken meat, then it is better to eat it in 1-2 days. Unlike other products, borsch becomes tastier over time. The liquid absorbs the aroma, nutrients from vegetables and meat, acquires a jelly-like consistency.
Rassolnik
Dishes made from pickled cucumber brine can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. The pickle will not deteriorate even on the third day. True, it will already be tasteless.
Kharcho
This high-calorie dish is made with fatty meats and rice. You can keep it cold for up to one day.On the second day, the rice will swell and the kharcho will look like porridge.
shurpa
Thick vegetable shurpa made with lamb broth can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, not more. True, such a dish is considered very heavy and it is advisable not to overdo it.
Beet
Botvinya, beet or okroshka is a vegetable and meat salad. The cut piece can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. To prepare beet salad, season the vegetable salad with beet broth or kvass. Okroshka can be made with kefir.
True, botvinya and okroshka are seasoned, salted only before serving.
Lactic
It is considered the most perishable dish. Milk soup prepared in the morning can stay in the refrigerator, without spoiling, until the evening at most. Its storage period is 10-12 hours.
Vegetable
Soup cooked with vegetable broth can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. Over time, the color of such a dish may change. However, discoloration is not a sign of deterioration.
Cream soup
If milk or sour cream was introduced into the composition of such a dish, then the storage period is only 10-12 hours. This perishable product is best eaten immediately after cooking.
With meatballs
Vegetable soup with meatballs can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. Admittedly, its taste deteriorates over time. It is best to cook this soup in small portions and eat it right away.
Peas
Traditionally, pea soup is made with smoked spare ribs. Instead, you can take brisket or sausages. It is advisable to eat such a soup for the first 1-2 days.
Cabbage soup
Soup cooked from sauerkraut in meat broth can stand in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. The most delicious dish is considered to be the one that languished in the oven for 3-4 hours and infused for some time in a warm place. True, you need to eat cabbage soup prepared using this technology immediately after cooking.
Factors that affect shelf life
According to sanitary standards, starters cannot be kept even in the refrigerator for more than 24 hours. True, the soup in a cold place, without spoiling, can last about 2-3 days. The shelf life of the first dish is influenced by a number of factors.
Cleanliness in the kitchen
For cooking you should take only cleanly washed dishes. Before boiling the broth, the pan must be cleaned with soda, rinsed and rinsed with boiling water. Every housewife must have perfect cleanliness in the kitchen. If you do not follow generally accepted sanitary and hygienic standards, any product, even in the refrigerator, will not hold even for 2 days.
Cooking technology
The cooking technology and the products used during cooking affect the shelf life of the finished dish. Beef broth soup will keep for almost 3 days, but if you add sour cream to it, the dish will deteriorate in the end from the first day. Will not withstand long term storage of ear or broth on mushrooms.
The main rule when cooking the first dish is to digest it better than not to cook it. An undercooked meal can lead to serious food poisoning.
Ingredient quality
For cooking, you should take only fresh products without an unpleasant smell and without signs of rotting.High-quality ingredients not only affect the taste of the dish, but also have a positive effect on human health.
amount of salt
Preservatives extend the shelf life of the soup. If you add enough salt to the dish, the shelf life will increase. Of course, you have to salt the soup to taste, it's better at the end of cooking.
How to Freeze Properly
Housewives who have cooked too much soup often ask: can the first course be frozen? You can put any product in the freezer and it will freeze permanently. True, it is better not to freeze the soup, because after defrosting all the vegetables will turn into porridge. Only the broth is subject to freezing. Prepared for future use, it can be the base of any soup. The broth can be frozen in a plastic container or a tempered glass jar.
For thawing, the container with broth from the freezer should be placed in the refrigerator or on the table so that the liquid is thawed at room temperature. Anyone in a hurry can put a pot of broth in a pan of warm water.
Signs of spoiled product
After sitting in the refrigerator for a while, the soup may spoil. Identifying an expired product is very simple: you have to examine it carefully, smell it and taste it.
Signs of spoiled soup:
- turbidity of the liquid;
- the formation of a greyish film on the surface;
- sour smell and taste;
- formation of acid foam on heating.
The spoiled dish should be poured into the toilet, after removing all large lumps and bones from the pan. It is forbidden to consume acidic products. After all, a cooked dish deteriorates if microorganisms dangerous to health begin to grow in it.
How much can be stored in a thermos
To eat fresh soup at work, you can pour the warmed dish into a clean thermos. True, in this state the soup will last only 2-3 hours, then it will turn sour. You can first boil it for a few minutes, then pour it into a thermos, which must first be not only washed, but also poured with boiling water. In this case, the dish will not turn until lunchtime.
It is best to take a container or can of cold soup with you to work. Upon arriving at the office, place the container in the refrigerator and heat it in the microwave before use. If there are no household appliances at work, you can pour hot, moderately salted broth into a thermos. It will stay fresh until lunch time.
Tips & Tricks
Tips from experienced housewives to keep soup fresh for a long time:
- immediately after cooling, the dish should be placed in a cold place;
- you cannot leave a jar of borscht on the windowsill, there it will quickly turn sour;
- for lunch, take the required amount on a plate and put it in the microwave;
- you can only salvage a portion with a clean, dry ladle;
- you cannot eat from a pan with a spoon, the dish can quickly deteriorate;
- if there is a small amount of cabbage soup or borscht left after dinner in the pan, you can pour it into a smaller container.