Puff pastry is loved for its delicate structure and the crispy crust of the finished pastry. It is used to prepare not only sweet products, but also salty flour snacks. There are yeast and unleavened puff pastry, the first rises due to steam and yeast, and the second – only due to steam. It can be classic, cheese or creamy. How long puff pastry is stored in the refrigerator or freezer depends on its composition. In this article, we will tell you how to store puff pastry correctly.
Basic rules
Regardless of where the yeast puff pastry will be stored, it must be wrapped in a plastic bag – and this is the only correct option in which it can be. Food film or a container is suitable for yeast.
According to the State Standard, the shelf life of puff pastry in the refrigerator is:
- for yeast dough – up to 2 days;
- for unleavened – up to 3 days.
Any type of puff pastry includes butter. It is introduced at the last stage, when the mass of other ingredients has previously been cooled. Accordingly, after cooking, the finished puff pastry can be left at room temperature for a maximum of 1 hour. With a long stay in warm conditions, the structure will begin to change due to the melting of butter.
In the fridge
To keep homemade yeast-free puff pastry for two days without freezing, it is wrapped in several layers with cling film or sent to a food container.
It is better to place the puff pastry on the top shelf of the refrigerator, where the temperature is kept at 2-6 °C.
How to freeze puff pastry
Now about how long you can store puff pastry in the freezer. Puff pastry is frozen at a temperature of -18 °C, under the following conditions it will be stored:
- unleavened – up to 1 month;
- yeast – up to 2 weeks.
Many people say that puff pastry can be re-frozen. In fact, after defrosting, only yeast-free dough can be sent to the freezer again, it can withstand one more freeze. But it will not work to freeze the yeast again, otherwise the yeast will die, and it will be difficult to work with the dough. This is especially true for store-bought products, since the buyer can never know exactly how many times it has already been re-frozen.
It is important to know how long the thawed puff pastry is stored. This period is up to 2 days, but only in the refrigerator. Do not leave it at room temperature after defrosting.
To defrost the dough, you can place it:
- in the microwave;
- near a heat source;
- on the middle shelf of the refrigerator.
Store-bought frozen dough can be sent to the refrigerator to thaw it there. In this case, the storage period will increase by a day, which will be used for defrosting.
Do not pack the yeast puff pastry too tightly so that it has room to rise. In addition, the yeast must “breathe”, so it is packed in a plastic bag with holes.
So that the surface of puff pastry does not dry out during defrosting, it is periodically sprinkled with water.
Puff pastry can be defrosted in the microwave only if it is possible to set a power of 150 W, otherwise it will start cooking. Placing it near the stove, battery and other sources of heat, it is important to ensure that the dough does not “float”.