Parmesan belongs to hard cheeses produced of cow’s whole milk. It is usually aged from twelve to thirty-six months and this cheese is widely famous as an ingredient in soups, pasta, and pizza topping, and salads. And of course, we enjoy eating it as it is!
Does parmesan cheese go bad? How to make it last longer?
These and other questions will be answered below.
Related: Fresh Cheese. Useful Tips About Cheese
6 Parmesan Top Useful Qualities You Didn’t Know About
Like any cheese, parmesan has plenty of beneficial qualities. Unless you’re allergic to cheese or dairy products, consuming this natural product will improve your state of health significantly!
So what are those mysterious benefits this cheese possesses?
- Parmesan is a lactose-free cheese
- It contains very little fat like all hard cheeses do which makes it perfect for dietary eating
- This cheese is free of carbs
- When eating parmesan regularly, we provide our body with the necessary protein
- This cheese includes many vitamins such as vitamins A, B6, and B12
- It is a source of minerals including calcium, zinc, copper, and phosphorus
Of course, after learning about these benefits a simple cheese has, everyone would like to know how to prolong the lifespan of such a treasure!
Related: Can You Freeze Cheese?
How Long Does Parmesan Cheese Last?
Since this product belongs to hard sorts of cheese, it is pretty long-lasting just like its other “comrades”.
Normally, parmesan cheese shelf life lasts for approximately seven to nine months if the packet is unopened (that’s if we mean a store-purchased foodstuff). An opened packet will remain fresh for up to six weeks.
However, certain variations may take place so let’s consider some of them.
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The Risk Of Consuming An Expired Parmesan Cheese
Parmesan is a sort of hard cheese that is pretty long-lasting, and if properly stored, it can remain edible for quite a long period of time.
An unopened package of this cheese can last for as long as seven months and up to nine months.
As for the opened packet, its lifespan is, of course, shorter and consists of one or two months at most.
However, such durability does not mean parmesan can’t spoil. If we store the cheese improperly, it can develop various signs of spoilage:
- mold
- rind color change
- off smell
- texture
- rancid or sour taste
- clumping
Mold is especially dangerous since quite many kinds of it are rather harmful and can cause serious diseases. And even if in most cases we can cut the moldy parts of the parmesan block and safely eat the rest of the cheese, there is always a chance that the spores of harmful mold can also spread over the surface of the cheese.
If you eat spoiled parmesan that has mold on it, you take a huge risk since harmful bacteria can get into your stomach, such as:
- Salmonella
- coli
- Listeria
- Brucella
- Penicillia
- P. Roqueforti
This is why, in order to avoid severe food poisoning, always check your cheese carefully for any signs of quality decay before tasting it
How long is grated parmesan cheese good for?
Grated parmesan cheese shelf life is shorter compared to the one of the whole piece since crumbled product degrades faster. Anyway, it must stay edible until the expiry date set on the packet plus seven days more if we keep it refrigerated.
Once the packet is opened, the crumbled product must be consumed within the next week.
How long does parmesan cheese last in the fridge?
That hangs upon what type of cheese we are talking about. The whole piece can stay edible for up to nine months whereas an opened packet of shredded foodstuff won’t last more than a week.
How long does parmesan cheese last unrefrigerated?
The product sold unrefrigerated, as well as the kraft parmesan cheese will stay consumable for thirty more days past the expiration date. An opened packet will expire within four to six months.
As you see, this sort of cheese is quite durable, however, it doesn’t mean that we can neglect the basic storage rules.
Related: Tips for How Can You Freeze Cream Cheese at Home
How to Store Parmesan Cheese
Storing cheese is a bit tricky. We guess quite many of us had to discard the leftover cheese because it became slimy earlier than we expected. That’s because the proper conditions were not provided for the product.
Parmesan cheese expiration strongly hangs upon where and how we keep it.
The cheese will stay fresh if we wrap it tightly into a plastic cover and refrigerate.
If any air reaches the foodstuff, it will start drying: its rind will harden and the cheese itself will start turning white.
To reanimate the cheese, wrap it in a damp cloth, cover with a plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, take off the cloth and re-wrap the product with a new cover again.
Do you have to refrigerate parmesan cheese, people often ask? Of course, otherwise, it will spoil much faster being exposed to air.
Should you refrigerate grated parmesan cheese?
Again, yes. Refrigeration protects parmesan from drying and hardening keeping the cheese fresh longer.
Does Parmesan Go Bad?
That’s what everyone is curious about most of all! For some reason, people tend to think that hard cheeses are eternal and won’t spoil, no matter what.
Unfortunately, it’s only a dream of lazy consumers!
Expired parmesan cheese is a real thing and it’s quite simple to define.
Mold is the basic sign of spoilage, nevertheless, it doesn’t make cheese harmful!
Just cut off the molded area, and consume the rest safely.
How to understand whether you have some old grated or shredded parmesan cheese?
- If the cheese is yellow or dark beige instead of white/light beige
- If it smells weird
- if you notice mold
- if shredded cheese feels spongy or wet
discard the foodstuff without hesitation.
Even though parmesan is very durable and, like any hard cheese, it is pretty hard to spoil, we would not recommend you to risk and consume the spoiled foodstuff of the one that looks or smells weir since there is always a high risk of getting food poisoning or other unpleasant health issues.
If the cheese doesn’t look trustworthy at all, you’d better throw it away. It is always better to buy a new fresh foodstuff than making yourself eat the food that might not be quite good!
To be more informed about the specifics of cheese storage, look through our FAQs.
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Read next: How Long Does Tofu Last?
How do you know if Parmesan cheese is bad? It has quite a specific smell even if fresh so how do I recognize the spoiled cheese?
My number one tip is to check the color. If the cheese is yellow or dark beige, it’s going bad. Grated parmesan will on the contrary be spongy and soft.
How do you make Parmesan cheese last longer? I like it but we don’t use it that often and cheese spoils.
I would suggest you wrap the original package with aluminum foil or plastic cling film. Or, even better, try to wrap the cheese itself in parchment, and then double-wrap with the film.
Does anyone know: does Parmesan cheese get more flavourful with age?
I’m always confused with its smell since it seems to me that the cheese is off.
Well, as far as I know, this cheese changes its aroma with time, and the smell becomes subtle. But I don’t know whether the potency of the flavor increases.
How long does a wheel of Parmesan last? Did anyone try to store it this way?
I never did but I read that the head of cheese if stored properly, can last for years.
Is mold in grated Parmesan cheese OK? I have some leftover Parmesan and it developed a bit of mold. Shall I discard it?
I would not recommend doing that because mold can contain harmful bacteria. And if it’s ok to cut off the moldy bit from the piece of cheese and eat the rest, shredded foodstuff must be discarded.
Why is Parmesan cheese so expensive? I’m always getting curious when I see the price in a store.
I guess it’s because the production of Parmesan is a lot of fuss. The aging takes quite a long time, in addition, this cheese requires a lot of attention and special conditions while making it.
Does parmesan cheese go bad in the refrigerator? If I just toss the chunk into the fridge, will it still be ok after a few days?
Of course it will! An opened chunk of this cheese, if refrigerated, will last for four to six weeks! Don’t hesitate to refrigerate it, the taste and the flavor won’t degrade at all.
I have some parmesan leftovers, quite a big piece, but it expired two days ago according to the package expiry term. Is parmesan cheese ok after the expiration date? Is it safe to still use it?
I used to eat parmesan when it was several days older than the official expiry date, and I never had problems after that. I mean, it is a hard cheese which means you can consume it safely even if it’s several days past the expiry date!
How can you tell if parmesan cheese has gone bad? It has quite a specific scent and taste so how not to confuse them with the odor of the spoiled foodstuff?
Well, from my own experience, spoiled parmesan is very hard even if compared to the fresh cheese (which is also hard to be called soft!). Also it will be much darker than the fresh foodstuff and the odor will be very strong! Of course, if you see mold, that’s the red sign!
I forgot to put my parmesan into the fridge yesterday so it spent the whole night out of the fridge. Does parmesan cheese go bad if left out overnight? Is it still safe to eat?
If it’s just 24 hours, then it’s still fine. I once ate parmesan that sat out for almost 2 days! And I was still ok after that.
We had a sale day yesterday in a local supermarket, so I bought several packets of parmesan. But now I’m afraid it can spoil if it stays sealed. Does parmesan cheese go bad in packets? Did any of you have such an experience?
Well, if you keep on storing it sealed, it will decay sooner or later simply because it has an expiry date! But in general, since parmesan is a hard cheese which means it is quite long lasting, it will remain edible for seven or even nine months. Of course, if you store it properly!
Can fresh parmesan cheese go bad? What can make it spoil faster than it should?
Yes, fresh cheese can spoil but only if it is improperly stored. Even after being opened, parmesan will remain fresh for a couple of months for sure! As for the factors that can make it spoil…Parmesan is resistant to bacteria growth since it is dehydrated. So unless you store it REALLY long, it will be ok to eat. I can only think of keeping it out of the fridge or under direct sunlight for a long period of time to make it go bad, to be honest.