Most cookie recipes call for chilling the cookie dough. Plus, having cookie dough in the fridge is usually a smart idea. But how long can you keep this delectable treat in the fridge?
Cookie dough may be stored in the refrigerator for two to four days. The exact time depends on whether the dough contains raw ingredients and if it is store-bought or handmade.
My name is Angie, and I’ve been baking for ten years. I like preparing a variety of sweets, including cookies, cakes, and cupcakes. I’ve tested numerous baking recipes and discovered that most dough is best refrigerated before baking.
Today, I’m going to tell you how long cookie dough keeps in the fridge so you can make the most of your cookie dough.
Let’s get this party started!
Contents
- Why Put Cookie Dough in the Fridge?
- How Long is Cookie Dough Good for in the Fridge?
- How to Best Store Cookie Dough?
- FAQs
- Final Thoughts
- FAQs
- Does refrigerated cookie dough go bad?
- How do you know if cookie dough has gone bad?
- How long is dough good for in the fridge?
- Can you refrigerate thawed cookie dough?
- Can you get food poisoning from bad cookie dough?
- Can you get salmonella from old cookie dough?
- How can you tell if dough is still good?
- Can I refrigerate dough and bake later?
- Can you refrigerate uncooked dough?
- How do you store dough in the fridge?
Why Put Cookie Dough in the Fridge?
Even if you don’t want to wait any longer to bake and enjoy your cookies, most cookie recipes will instruct you to chill your cookie dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before baking them. Sometimes it takes much longer.
Cooling your dough will help harden it and make it simpler to form before baking, as well as slow down cookie spreading. Additionally, cooling the dough helps enhance the tastes in the cookie. Your cookie will also get moister as the starches gently absorb the fat.
Keeping your cookie dough in the fridge can also extend its shelf life, albeit not as much as freezing it would, but certainly longer than leaving it on the counter.
How Long is Cookie Dough Good for in the Fridge?
Cookie dough may be stored in the refrigerator for three to five days.
Homemade
Since homemade cookie dough does not include preservatives, it has a somewhat shorter shelf life than store-bought cookie dough.
Homemade cookie dough may be kept in the fridge for up to five days if stored in an airtight container.
Store Bought
Store-bought cookie dough is designed to last longer. The shelf life varies depending on the type, but bear in mind that we’re talking about store-bought frozen cookie dough.
Most cookie dough has a 12-month shelf life in the freezer and is generally safe to consume up to a month or two beyond its best by date.
Yet, once frozen, condensed moisture causes your cookie dough to degrade faster. After thawing, you should bake your cookie within a week.
How to Best Store Cookie Dough?
Freezing cookie dough is the best method to keep it. It’s best to roll out the dough balls or scoop them out on a flat pan before freezing the dough since the dough will harden and you’ll have to let it thaw and mix again before you can shape the cookies again.
Cookie dough may be frozen for up to three months.
FAQs
I’ve addressed some of the most often asked questions concerning cookie dough in the fridge below.
Cookie dough does expire and should not be consumed beyond that date. The shelf life of your cookie dough is determined by a number of things. Is it uncooked cookie dough or edible cookie dough? What fresh ingredients do you use in your cookie dough?
Raw cookie dough including raw eggs and flour should not be cooked or consumed beyond the expiry date since it might cause food illness.
If your cookie dough starts to smell bad or becomes acidic, it’s time to throw it out. If you see mold on the surface of your cookie dough, you know it’s terrible.
In general, you cannot utilize cookie dough that has been left out overnight. Bacteria may develop in raw eggs and other dairy items used into the dough. It’s OK for a couple of hours, but overnight cookie dough will most certainly make you sick.
You may place the cookie dough in the freezer for approximately 15 minutes to chill. This will harden the dough and make it easier to scoop out or shape into dough balls. But, chilling it for an extended period of time may result in an extremely hard dough that you will be unable to handle.
Having said that, you may shape your dough into balls and freeze them. Cookie dough freezes well and adds height to your cookies when cooked.
Final Thoughts
Discovering cookie dough in the fridge is like discovering leftover Halloween candy in your pocket: it’s always a wonderful surprise.
That being said, after reading this post, you should know better than to keep your surprise in the fridge! Instead, put them in the freezer and you’ll have cookies for months if you don’t eat them all at once.
I hope this has addressed your concerns regarding storing cookie dough in the refrigerator. How do you typically keep cookie dough, and how has your experience been? Did they go bad? Please let us know in the comments section below.
Angie’s Bio
FAQs
Homemade cookie dough has a fridge life of three to five days, but if frozen, it may keep anywhere from six to twelve months.
The fragrance and color of cookie dough are the strongest indicators of spoilage. Spoiled cookie dough will have an odd odor and may be discolored or moldy. Any cookie dough that exhibits indications of spoiling should be discarded since it may make you extremely ill.
How long is dough good for in the fridge?
Dough may be refrigerated for up to 7 days before baking. The dough’s quality will begin to decrease after a few days, so use it within 3-5 days for the best results. To keep dough in the fridge, just place it in an airtight container or bowl covered with plastic wrap to restrict airflow.
Macaron and meringues are two examples of items that should not be frozen. You must bake all of these cookie doughs first, then package and freeze the completed cookies. The most essential thing to remember when thawing cookie dough, whether shortbread or drop cookies, is to chill it.
You may become ill if you consume unbaked dough or batter produced with germ-infested flour. Only when flour is baked or cooked can germs die. In 2016, 2019, and 2021, the CDC examined outbreaks of E. coli illnesses connected to uncooked flour or cake mix.
The bottom line: Consuming uncooked doughs and batters containing eggs is risky since the raw egg may be infected with Salmonella.
How can you tell if dough is still good?
Alternatively, freezer burn.
May 15, 2019
Pizza crust and dough have physical “tells” that indicate they are beyond their prime and may underperform:
A sour odor.
Texture has been reduced.
A very dry feeling and look.
A gray tint or gray specks that indicate dead yeast activators, failing cell structure, and
Can I refrigerate dough and bake later?
Indeed, the answer is yes! And it works with nearly any recipe.
Can you refrigerate uncooked dough?
Refrigerate the bread dough in an airtight container for up to a day. Choose a container twice the size of the dough. Dough may quadruple in size in the fridge in a single day, causing it to pour out of smaller containers. After the first rise, place the dough in the refrigerator.
How do you store dough in the fridge?
You may cover the surface of the dough with plastic wrap, wrap the whole dough in plastic wrap, or just store it in a sealed plastic bag or airtight container. Just take it out of the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature before making your pizza.
