how long will spices hold up when stored

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cal1956

Master of the Pit
Original poster
Apr 14, 2015
1,068
319
Colorado
the other day when i ordered more sausage seasoning i found out that from now on they are only going to be selling it by the case , so its got me wondering how long i can store it and still be able to use it
 
the other day when i ordered more sausage seasoning i found out that from now on they are only going to be selling it by the case , so its got me wondering how long i can store it and still be able to use it
I would have to think if you can vacuum pack in smaller quantities it should last a long time?
 
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i have plenty for this year , but i like to keep enough extra to do about 300 lbs , we have a vac sealer and i know we can seal the bags but i have never tried vac sealing with dry spices before ,i'll have to look but i think our machine has a delicate setting that might work
 
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Hopefully your supplier mixes up fresh batches several times a year. And properly stored, spices will be top notch for a year or so.

It's easy to test your sausage blend with an easy test cook on a burger or something.

Even if spices lose their 'zip' you can add about 15% extra if you are in a jamb with a small batch.
 
I would be looking at additional suppliers. A certain seasoning can become a little boring after time if forced to buy by the case.
I have vac sealed extra seasonings without noticing any depletion of flavor when used at later dates.
 
the problem is i can only get this from one supplier, but if i must i'll buy the cases and if it goes bad i'll just chalk it up to a price increase
 
the problem is i can only get this from one supplier, but if i must i'll buy the cases and if it goes bad i'll just chalk it up to a price increase
How have you done it in the past? You said you're retired...shouldn't be your first go round with spices.

Ryan
 
its a change in their policy up until now i have been able to buy them in 100 lb lots
now they have upped the min order to 1200 lbs , thats about a 3-4 year supply for me hence the need to know how long spices will last
 
i'll do better than that , if AFTER i buy the large amount , someone wants to try it and make 10 lbs of sausage .i will send them the correct amount free if they are willing to pay the shipping
 
i'll do better than that , if AFTER i buy the large amount , someone wants to try it and make 10 lbs of sausage .i will send them the correct amount free if they are willing to pay the shipping
Another idea for you...since you give so much if your sausage away...explain it to those that are receiving it...maybe they could make a small donation to help defray the cost. I would if I was given free sausage.

Ryan
 
everyone has offered many times to help defray my costs , but i firmly refused, i give the sasusage away because i enjoy doing it . never for money. think of what i do as paying it forward , it makes me happy
 
misunderstood , its enough spice to make 1200 lbs of sausage .sorry for the misunderstanding
 
Cal, what kind of sausage are you making?

I'm not sure if the seasoning you are referring to has the salt already added to it which would make for a lot more bulk than the spices alone would have but we've used vacuum sealed canning jars for years to store spices, cures and other dry food products. Jars are readily available most of the year in sizes from 4 ounces (120ml) up to 2-quarts (1900ml). And while the lids of pressure canned foods are definitely NOT re-sealable the lids used for dry storage can be resealed many times if you're careful in removing them.

We also do a lot of fairly long distance backpacking, take extended canoe based trips and so forth. While we much prefer to eat "real food" we unavoidably have to save space and weight at times so we keep bulk freeze dried and dehydrated foods, powered non-fat and whole milk, powdered buttermilk, powdered heavy cream, premixed homemade powdered soup/sauce bases etc in canning jars, too. A lot of those powdery things will clump up into a brick or go stale if left in the factory container or something like a Rubbermaid container. Foods like the freeze dried stuff that the maker advises to use in a few weeks after opening the original container will revert to their 10-25 year shelf life (product dependent....) if stored vacuum sealed.

To remove the lid without ruining it we place the spine edge of a table knife in the groove between the very beginning of the thread for the lid and the lid where the groove is the tightest and gently pry the lid up until it comes free. You can generally reseal the jar a dozen or more times before the lid rubber gets so compressed or dry that you need a new lid. Be sure to have the jar rim and the lid's sealing surface clean when attempting to seal the jar.

Jars and lids can be hard to find in the run up to canning season in late spring and during the summer so plan ahead.

On a safety note, a vacuum sealed jar with liquid or wet contents is pretty rugged whereas one with powdery contents can shatter and implode if handled roughly and knocked against something hard so don't go tossing them around. Handle them with a little dose of common sense.

In short, a jar sealing attachment set for your vacuum sealer can be a game changer when it comes to long term storage of dry spices, dehydrated or freeze dried foods etc.

Hopefully some of this rambling helps......

Best regards to all,


Lance
 

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