Can You Freeze Potato Salad? Storage Tips You Need To Know
For some strange reasons, every time you have a barbecue party over at your house, there’s always so much potato salad left over. It’s insane how even if there were a lot of people who came to your party and ate it, you would still have a huge bowl of potato salad left.
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Now you’re stuck with all this potato goodness and there’s only so much you can eat of it before getting tired of the same taste. So, what do you do with it?
You can give it away. Sharing it to your neighbors and friends is a kind gesture. But you will have to store it for now. Do you keep it in the refrigerator? Can you freeze potato salad?
Don’t fret. We got your back on this predicament. With this guide, you will know what to do every time you have potato salad leftover.
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Can You Freeze Potato Salad?
The answer to that is a simple yes. You can freeze potato salad. Like every other food you have leftover and if you are not planning on eating them anytime soon, storing potato salad in the freezer is a good choice. However, is it a wise choice?
Freezing food will not totally retain all of its freshness and original texture. If you leave potato salad in the freezer, the texture of your potatoes will not be as fresh, firm, and moist as you first stored it. Rather it would feel all mushed up and soggy due to the ice particles that thawed inside your potatoes.
You might even have a bigger problem if your potato salad includes dairy such as mayonnaise or tartar sauce. Bacterial growth may happen in your salad when you thaw it out using room temperature thereby turning your salad unsafe for consumption.
So can you freeze potato salad? Yes. But you must take extra care in thawing it out and be sure not to leave it stored for too long in the freezer.
How Long Can You Keep Potato Salad?
How long does potato salad last in the refrigerator, you might ask. Don’t worry, your salad will still be good for up to 5 days. Keeping it cool and fresh inside the refrigerator won’t do any harm at all.
If it’s in the freezer, potato salad will last for about a month. But don’t wait until then to take it out and eat it. As mentioned above, you do not want to have soggy potato salad. You don’t want to give away badly textured potato salad either now, would you?
How about store bought salads? How long does store bought potato salad last? This should be easier to figure out since store bought salads have labels on the packaging that tells you when it should be consumed. There should be a “best by” or expiration date on the label.
It’s best to follow the date on the label or consume your store bought potato salad immediately because store bought salads aren’t fresh. Most of them would have preservatives mixed in.
In conclusion, don’t wait a long time to eat your leftover potato salad or decide to give it away.
Tips in Storing Potato Salad
If you do decide to store your potato salad after a party, you can follow these storage tips:
1. Freeze In Airtight Container
Put your potato salad in an airtight container. Be sure to leave a space on top for the salad to expand once it freezes. Just leave about an inch and a half of space and then tightly seal it. Don’t forget to label and put a date, so you’ll remember when you stored your potato salad.
2. Use A Reusable Bag
You can use a reusable bag for freezing your potato salad. Make sure it’s freezer safe otherwise the bag would crack open if you accidentally move it around inside the freezer.
3. Put It Inside The Refrigerator
If you’re wary of putting your potato salad inside the freezer then store it inside the refrigerator. But remember to consume it within 3 to 5 days otherwise your salad might go bad.
To thaw: If you’ve chosen the option to freeze your potato salad, be sure to thaw it properly when you decide to consume it. We’ve talked about bacterial growth happening when you thaw your potato salad out at room temperature. To avoid this, thaw your frozen salad inside the refrigerator, so the ingredients remain intact and your potatoes don’t get mushed easily.
What To Do With Leftover Potato Salad?
Now, if you’re still not convinced you should keep leftover potato salad anywhere near your fridge and freezer, you can still turn it into something else. Below are a few cooking ideas on what to do with leftover potato salad:
Never again will you trouble over the question “can you freeze potato salad” because this guide is sure to help you. Maybe next time when you have a barbecue party, try to portion your potato salad, so you don’t have so much leftover. But if you still have a lot to keep afterward, with this guide, you’ll know what to do.
