Part 2 of my Baking Basics series:An extensive list of commonly used baking ingredients in the pantry, fridge and freezer and their shelf lives so that you know when it’s time to replace them for the best baking results.
We all know expiration dates are a thing, but some people take them more seriously than others (remind me to tell you about my husband’s history with expiration dates some time).
When it comes to baking ingredients, fresher is always better – especially when we’re talking about leaveners, as it can make or break the results of your recipe. It’s hard to keep track of the shelf life of everything in your pantry, fridge and freezer, so I wanted to provide you with charts about all my most commonly used ingredients as a point of reference.
A few tips for shelf life hygiene
Keep in mind, this all assumes that the ingredients are stored properly.
If you’re not sure how long you’ve had something, and/or there’s no date on the package, it’s time to toss it for a new one.
If you can’t read the expiration date on a package because it’s worn off… that’s a good sign it’s time to replace it.
I’ve made it practice to replace my baking powder, baking soda, and cornstarch before the holidays to make sure I’m giving my best to all the Christmas goodies.
Dry pantry staples
Ingredient
Shelf Life
Baking powder
1 year
Baking soda
2 years
Candy melts
18 months
Chocolate baking bars
1 year
Chocolate chips
1 year
Cocoa powder
1 year
Cornstarch
1 year
Cream of tartar
2 years
Espresso powder
3 months
Flours
6 months
Marshmallows
6 months
Marshmallow Fluff
6 months
Salt, no additives
Forever!
Salt, sea or fleur de sel
Forever, but best to use date on package
Sprinkles
3 years
Sugar, coconut
2 years
Sugar, granulated
2 years
Sugar, light or dark brown
2 years (but technically, never goes bad and get be re-softened)
Sugar, powdered
2 years
Yeast
Date on package
Liquid pantry staples
Ingredient
Shelf Life
Broths (chicken, beef, vegetable)
Unopened: 1 year Opened: 5 days
Coconut milk
2 years
Extracts (almond, mint, imitation vanilla, etc.)
2 years
Honey
Forever!
Maple syrup, real
1 year, unopened
Milk, shelf stable
Date on package
Milk, sweetened condensed
1 year
Molasses
2 years
Oil, coconut
2 years
Oil, vegetable or canola
1 year
Oil, extra virgin olive
6 months
Oil, non-stick spray
1 year (or date on package)
Vanilla, pure extract
Forever!
Canned goods
Product
Shelf Life
Applesauce
1 year
Broths (beef, chicken, vegetable)
2 years (or as noted on package)
Fruit (peaches, pineapple, cherries, etc.)
1 year
Pumpkin, puree
1 year
Seafoods (salmon, tuna, etc.)
2 years (or as noted on package)
Tomatoes (crushed, diced, stewed, sauce)
12 months
Condiments
Product
Shelf Life
Dressings
1 year (or as noted on package)
Hot sauce
5 years
Jams
2 years
Jellies
2 years
Mayonnaise
3 months
Mustard, yellow or ground
2 years
Peanut butter
9 months (unopened), 3 months (once opened)
Sesame oil
1 year
Soy sauce
3 years
Vinegar, any kind
Forever! (but best if used within 2 years)
Worcestershire sauce
1 year
Dried goods
Product
Shelf Life
Breadcrumbs
6 months
Chia seeds
3 years
Fruit (cranberries, figs, raisins, etc.)
12 months
Nuts
6 months
Oats
12 months
Pasta, dried and boxed
2 years
Rice, brown
6 months
Rice, jasmine
2 years
Rice, white
2 years
Rice, wild
6 months
Commonly Used Spices
These are the spices I use most often and that you’ve seen in recipes on this site. Outside of this list (generally speaking):
Whole spices will last 4 years
Ground spices will last 3 years
Dried herbs will last 2 years
Spice
Shelf Life
Allspice
2 years
Bay leaves
1 year
Chili powder
2 years
Cinnamon, ground
2 years
Cinnamon, sticks
3 years
Cumin
2 years
Garlic powder
2 years
Ginger, ground
2 years
Mustard, ground yellow
3 years
Nutmeg
2 years
Onion powder
2 years
Oregano, dried
2 years
Parsley, dried
2 years
Pepper, black
2 years
Pepper, white
2 years
Poppy seeds
3 years
Thyme
1 year
Vanilla, whole beans
1 year
The above photo is for the sake of showing a collection of products – most are not actually stored in the fridge door.
Refrigerated
Product
Shelf Life
Bacon
2 weeks
Butter
3 months
Buttermilk
2 weeks
Cheese, hard
6 months (unopened)
Cheese, soft
1 week
Cream cheese
2 months, or date on package
Eggs
1 month
Heavy cream
2 weeks
Mascarpone cheese
2 months, or date on package
Milk, dairy
1 week
Milk, non-dairy (refrigerated)
10 days
Milk, non-dairy (not refrigerated)
1 month
Sour cream
3 weeks
Frozen
Product
Shelf Life
Bacon
6 months
Cool Whip
4 months
Corn
1 year
Cranberries
1 year
Ice cream
Date on package
Peas
1 year
Phyllo dough
3 months
Pie crust
1 year
I hope this helps! Are there any questions about ingredient shelf life that I didn’t answer? Let me know in the comments below!
Oy vey! Don't let my husband see this list or we will be pitching out everything in our pantry! He's a stickler for expiration dates while I'm the one who on January 7 was still drinking milk dated December 25. I'm a new follower of Stress Baking and love it. Baking is so therapeutic.
Leslie Kiszka
Monday 13th of January 2020
Thank you for joining the Stress Baking community, thrilled to have you! And as for your pantry... well, it's painful, but someone has to do it :)
Hi there! I’m Leslie and I use baking as an outlet for relieving stress and anxiety to provide you with easy to follow homemade recipes and a little humor. About Leslie >>
Laurel McKinney
Sunday 12th of January 2020
Oy vey! Don't let my husband see this list or we will be pitching out everything in our pantry! He's a stickler for expiration dates while I'm the one who on January 7 was still drinking milk dated December 25. I'm a new follower of Stress Baking and love it. Baking is so therapeutic.
Leslie Kiszka
Monday 13th of January 2020
Thank you for joining the Stress Baking community, thrilled to have you! And as for your pantry... well, it's painful, but someone has to do it :)