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Do you keep opened jams/sauces/condiments in the fridge?

Following on from my quest to find room for veg now I have a smaller fridge :p I am now looking at ways to reduce how many bottles of sauces/ketchups etc we have in there.

So far I have decided that since we rarely have chicken/turkey as a roast dinner except at Xmas, it is pointless keeping cranberry sauce from one year to next, so in future it will be used up just into the New Year.

Only Mr Spendless likes mustard, so why do I keep a huge jar of that in the fridge :confused: . Occassionally we add relishes to sandwiches but it's not a regular thing. Years ago when I used to shop at Morrisons they used to sell tiny jars of different pickles/sauces/mustards etc, do they still? If they do I thought of getting some (like mustard, tomato relish) and storing them in a cupboard and using them when we need them. Know they work out more expensive, but I need the space in the fridge for things we eat more often.

DH says his parents never keep things like ketchup in fridge, but on label it says you need to once opened, do you?

I've also got in there, the following jars all opened, HP sauce (only DH likes this:rolleyes: ), apple sauce, prawn cocktail sauce (def think you'll have to keep these in fridge), mint sauce (don't know about this and label ripped off), 2 jams and a marmalade in fridge. Do I need to keep all this in there?

Some help much needed please.
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Comments

  • janeym8
    janeym8 Posts: 529
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    I always keep opened jars of sauces etc in the fridge but I never used to.I find that they keep better-especially jams which I always used to find went either mouldy-yes i did scrape it off anmd use but dont tell my kids lol,or it went runny
    An additional bonus which i think is correct that the fridge runs more efficiently when its full so as the week goes on and the fridge becomes emptier ,being full of jars of things means it costs less to run.
    also ive never any room in my cupboards

    janey xx
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  • Gingernutmeg
    Gingernutmeg Posts: 3,454
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    I store most opened jars in the fridge - apart from Marmite lol, which is impossible to spread when it's cold!

    Realistically, you don't need to store anything that's really vinegary in the fridge, and really sugary jams (over 60% sugar) will be ok in a cupboard as long as you eat them fairly quickly. Keeping stuff like ketchup cool will help it to last longer, although if you get through it quickly then I'm sure it will be fine in a cupboard. I'd imagine that Heinz say you have to just to cover their backs :)

    I personally prefer to store home-made stuff in the fridge though, regarless of what it is, as it doesn't have all of the preservatives of the commercial stuff. I also like to keep jam in the fridge, as it lasts much longer when it's kept cool. Also, from a practical point of view, if I keep all of my opened jars in the fridge door, it means that I know what I've got open and I don't end up with four half opened jars of jam.

    Anything creamy - like prawn cocktail sauce, mayonnaise, horseradish sauce etc - does need to stay in the fridge, and will generally have a faily short life once it's opened, probably about 3-6 weeks.

    It is a pain having lots of jars in the fridge though. My local Morrisons used to sell the little tiny jars of mustard etc, and you can often find them in delis.
  • thriftlady_2
    thriftlady_2 Posts: 9,128
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    I don't keep any sauces like ketchup in the fridge. It's a preserve, it's full of sugar and vinegar - what's going to happen to it if you don't refrigerate it ? It's never occured to me to put mustard in the fridge.

    I do, however keep my homemade jams, jellies and chutneys in the fridge, but this is more because if they are in there they aren't cluttering up my cupboards. They don't need refrigerating either.
  • LJM
    LJM Posts: 4,535 Forumite
    nope keep them in cupboard to as youve said its a preserve so it will last,but i do keep all my jams/marmalades in the fridge
    :xmastree:Is loving life right now,yes I am a soppy fool who believes in the simple things in life :xmastree:
  • Alikay
    Alikay Posts: 5,147
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    I keep all open sauces in the fridge, plus jam, marmalade, chutney and pickle. The only open jars of moist stuff I keep in the cupboard are marmite, honey (it sets) and syrup (too sugary for anything dodgy to grow in it). My mum never used to keep any of that stuff in the fridge and we never got ill from it though!
  • Spendless
    Spendless Posts: 24,111
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    Right you've convinced me, the ketchup is coming out at least till we've got a smaller bottle, and so is the HP and the mustard, only DH eats that anyway:p . The cranberry sauce, relish,and Branston pickle is going to be used up over next week and I'll go and find the tiny jars instead. We currently have 2 jams on the go cos 1 is my fav stuff I can only get in France and the kids don't like it.

    What about the mint sauce, can it come out or not :confused:
  • floyd
    floyd Posts: 2,722
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    Wow this isn't something i had ever thought about before but I think where I keep sauces is largely determined by where my Mum kept them!
    Ketchup, HP, chilli sauce, mustard, barbeque and relish all live in a cupboard and marmalade, mint sauce, cranberry sauce, salad dressing, mayo, Branston and salad cream all live in the fridge. I don't think there is any logical reason for this as I have been known to move things from one to the other if I need the space.
    I am guilty of rarely reading the label for things like this and just giving them a 'sniff' before use to check for nasties :)
  • astroelle
    astroelle Posts: 74 Forumite
    Most sauces, ketchup etc used to be fine in the cupboard. However a few years ago there was a big drive to reduce preservatives and artificial additives and many manufacturers did. It was at that point that they started to suggest refrigeration. While I agree that sugar and vinegar are natural preservatatives I personally prefer to keep these in the fridge.
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  • shazspice
    shazspice Posts: 1,466
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    I keep all sauces in the cupboard only sauces i keep in the fridge are mayo and salad cream :)
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  • jcr16
    jcr16 Posts: 4,185 Forumite
    spendless yes morrisons do still sell small jars of relish/mustard etc. they have one section in the jam/choc spread section and one in the tom sauce/pickle section. they are 25p a jar or 5 for a £1 at the mo. i was only looking at them on sunday.

    i keep jam/marmalde in the fridge. if i buy sandwich spread this i keep in there along with mayonaise. but i anal about things like this. i generally put a label on it , when i opened it . so i don't keep it opne longer than the stated time.
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