Can a simple vinaigrette be stored at room temp?
In my dark cabinet live bottles of: olive oils, vinegars. Once I open mustard, I move it into the fridge. So when I mix these ingredients together, and add mustard (salt and pepper), I feel the need to refrigerate the leftovers if I make more than I need that night. Then, the next time, I forget that the mixed dressing is there, and end up with yet another batch in the fridge. Or when I do remember, the oil inevitably has solidified and I'm not able to use that batch right away, and there I go, again, more of a mix.
Recently I read this, which appears to say it is fine to keep prepared mustard at room temp if used within a month(contrary to the directions on bottles/jars):
http://homecooking.about.com/od/foodstorage/a/mustardstorage.htm
So- what do you do? I'm not talking about huge batches. If I kept it at room temp, I would probably use the rest within a few days to a week.
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12 Comments:
I think the acid content would probably make it okay to leave at room temp for a while. Wouldn't know exactly for how long really though.
wunami at 6:27PM on 01/12/08
The thing about leaving mustard at room temp or higher is it loses its potency much more quickly than at fridge temp. The refrigerator recommendation on jars is to preserve the flavor longer. But as far as safety goes, as long as you are just using oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper--yes it will be fine. I use garlic or shallots in my dressing, so I always keep it in the fridge, but use it in 2-3 days anyway, as I find the flavor suffers after that time. But really, it doesn't take long for the oil to return to liquid, so why not just keep it in the fridge?
Eilen at 6:59PM on 01/12/08
Warming the jar in a hot tap water will liquify the olive oil pretty quickly without cooking it.
kjgibson at 8:11PM on 01/12/08
Hmmm... thanks for the thoughts. Sometimes I do the jar in hot tap water method. That's actually what started my thinking about leaving at room temp, versus cool, warm, cool, warm, cool, warm... I think my best bet is just to make sure I make it in extremely small batches and do it fresh each time. Thanks again.
souvenir at 11:58PM on 01/12/08
I have a 3 bottle cruet holder on the table and one is for olive oil, one is for a: red wine vinegar/olive oil/s&p/ herbs/dijon/ mix, and the third is for balsamic. No one has gotten ill in my house. It all depends on the ingredients and the preference. Raised in Italy, cold dressing on a salad was never acceptable. Kind of like sliced bread or iodized sale.
cucinacecilia at 12:52AM on 01/13/08
I'd have no problem with leaving it out, especially if it was used within a few days.
Kerosena at 3:44PM on 01/14/08
It depends on the actual room temperature, and whether it is left in the sun, say by a window. I can keep it in my dark pantry in the summer, but not in my warmer kitchen in the summer. I usually make it right in the bowl and enough for only that meal. A vinegar or lemon juice, olive oil, dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and mashed garlic clove - that's the way we do.
dksbook at 6:52PM on 01/14/08
I would say not indefinitely and not in a blazing hot room.
chiff0nade at 7:47PM on 01/14/08
Thanks for the additional comments. The temperature swing in our house during the winter is about 62-75. I would store the container in a dark cabinet which never gets direct sun. Winter (well these temps are winter for me) is typically when I misjudge the proportions and have extra.
souvenir at 6:33PM on 01/15/08
If you put garlic in your vinaigrette, you should store it in the fridge and use it within a couple of days. The combination of garlic in oil makes a good breeding ground for botulism.
mandybrown at 3:54PM on 01/16/08
Years ago, my husband went through a phase of wanting really garlicky vinaigrette. I would make a week's worth using several cloves of garlic, leave it in a sealed container on the kitchen counter, and we had a slightly different dressing each day. Now I realize that we're lucky to be alive. But, of course, that was before we were convinced that food kills.
islandexile at 9:10PM on 01/16/08
As long as you don't add any fresh herbs, garlic or shallots to the vinaigrette it will last up to a month on the countertop.
KathyMcD at 10:16PM on 01/16/08