Once opened, Parmesan cheese tends to mold and quickly goes bad even when stored in the refrigerator.
However, a simple trick could now make Parmesan cheese last longer.Parmesan cheese is a true classic of Italian cuisine and enhances nearly every pasta dish. The beloved hard cheese, however, has one drawback: Parmesan tends to mold and quickly loses its flavor if not stored properly. A simple trick could extend the shelf life of Parmesan cheese.
Once a package of Parmesan is opened, the cheese inside it – even when refrigerated – quickly goes bad. Learn how to prevent this in the future and how to properly store Parmesan cheese.
With this trick, Parmesan stays fresh longer
Mold particularly thrives in damp places. To extend the shelf life of Parmesan cheese, you should therefore prevent the hard cheese from coming into contact with too much moisture. To prevent Parmesan cheese from molding, it’s helpful to place a few uncooked pasta pieces in the open cheese packaging. The pasta ultimately absorbs the moisture, keeping the Parmesan cheese fresh for longer. This trick works best when storing the cheese in a resealable bag or container. In principle, the type of pasta used doesn’t matter – however, short pasta shapes are better suited for this trick.
Proper Storage of Parmesan Cheese
Regardless of the type of cheese, cheese should always be stored in a dark, cool, and dry place. Additionally, cheese in block form always lasts longer than grated or sliced cheese. So, if you don’t need much Parmesan cheese at once, it’s best to buy Parmesan in block form and grate it as needed.
How long does Parmesan cheese last when stored properly?
How quickly should hard cheese be consumed? If Parmesan cheese is tightly sealed and stored in the refrigerator, you can rely on the following durations:
Grated Parmesan cheese: maximum one week of storage Parmesan cheese in block form: two to four weeks of storage
By storing Parmesan cheese with a few uncooked pasta pieces, you can extend its shelf life by several days. Alternatively, you could also vacuum-seal the opened cheese (shelf life: three to four months) or freeze it (shelf life: about six months).
By the way: If you discover white spots on the Parmesan cheese, it’s usually not a sign of mold. It’s simply salt crystals, and you can consume the hard cheese without concern. If Parmesan cheese smells unpleasant or shows blue, sometimes green, mold, its shelf life has expired, and you should discard the cheese.