I made some Jell-O a while ago and brought the leftovers in to work. It’s been hanging out in the breakroom fridge, neatle labelled with my name, and I grab a couple spoonfuls here and there when I have a little sweet craving. (I’m the type of person who can eat three M&Ms and put the bag away for later.)
I just did the math and realized that stuff is at least a month old. :eek: There’s no mold or other signs of spoilage, though. Anyone ever done any science experiments with Jell-O longevity?
(Mods, I debated if this should go in Cafe Society or not. My apologies if I chose unwisely.)
I don’t think gelatin (don’t they use agar gel) has quite the same sugar content as Jell-O. I’d think that would keep stable quite a bit longer then just plain gelatin.
Personally, I find it gets a film on it after a few days and toss it then, but I’ve usually finished it anyways.
Agar is a different sugar compound than jello. It’s designed with sugars and nutrients in it to foster microbial growth. Jello is gelatin, sugar, water and little else. If the jello passes the sniff test, it’s still good.
I’ve kept jello over a month in the fridge. The worst that happened to it was parts of it dehydrated and turned to rubber, but none of it ever got moldy.
I know that…Gelatin is still used in some contexts, mainly checking for proteolysis. Although Jell-O’s sugar content is very high, every time she opens the container, she places at best a non-sterile spoon into a medium, at worst one inoculated with oral flora. Of course, the dehydration decreases the water activity.
But I still wouldn’t eat something that cost about 50 cents to make after a few days.