With recent increased interest in healthy eating, hummus has become a very popular food choice. You might be wondering how long you can take to use it before it’s no good.

Quick Answer

Hummus will eventually go bad no matter what.

• Store-bought hummus will last for longer than home-made hummus.
• Freezing your hummus will allow it to last the longest, for about six months.
• If you freeze your hummus, it must be placed in the fridge for several hours to one day to defrost before consuming.
• If kept in the fridge, expect your hummus to last around a week if store-bought and four to five days if home-made.

Where and how you store your hummus will play into how long you can keep it around for. Let’s explore some of the different ways you can keep your favorite chickpea spread in good condition.

Does Hummus Go Bad? How Long Does Hummus Last?

Your hummus will eventually go bad if you don’t consume it, no matter what. It can last for anywhere from just a few days to up to six months. Depending on your circumstances, you might choose to keep it in one of the following places.

How Long Does Hummus Last Outside?

If you happen to live in a climate that allows you to store food outside, you might choose to put your hummus outdoors. This isn’t the best option for storing your hummus, but can work in a pinch. Hummus will last about a week when kept this way.

Consider how your hummus was kept in the store: While it isn’t as common, unrefrigerated hummus does exist. If you happen to purchase this kind, you can keep it at room temperature or colder for as long as the package remains sealed.

Think about the weather outside: If you live in a hot climate or it’s summertime, you should avoid keeping your hummus outside, even if it was unrefrigerated in the store. Hummus must not be exposed to hot temperatures, no matter what. If you happen to live in an area or are in a season where the temperatures drop to or below freezing, you can very safely store hummus outside.

How Long Does Hummus Last in the Fridge?

When thinking about where to put your new container of hummus, the fridge is probably the first place that comes to mind. Keeping your hummus in the fridge is the simplest method, and isn’t dependent on a lot of external factors like the weather.

Opened hummus must always be kept cold: Even hummus that was kept unrefrigerated in the store must be put in a cold place, like the fridge, after opening.

Hummus will last differently depending on how it was made: If you’re storing home-made hummus, it doesn’t contain the preservatives that store-bought hummus does. For this reason, it will last around four to five days. Store-bought hummus will last for around a week.

Keep it tight: It’s very important that you keep your hummus container sealed tightly to prevent unwanted microorganisms like bacteria from entering. If the top isn’t fitting tightly anymore, use plastic wrap.

How Long Does Hummus Last in the Freezer?

Hummus can absolutely be kept in the freezer; it will last for around six months here. If you want to keep your hummus around for quite a while, this is your best option.

Keep track of when you freeze it: Write the date that you place the hummus in the freezer somewhere where you won’t lose it. This date will become your new expiration date from the time you take it out of the freezer to when you either discard it or freeze it again.

Break the seal a bit: Before you freeze your hummus, if it’s store-bought and has a seal on the container, break it just a tiny bit. Hummus will expand a bit when it freezes, so you want to make sure it doesn’t break out of the container by giving it just a little wiggle room.

The longer you keep it, the lower the quality: The more time your hummus spends in the freezer, the more the consistency and flavor will change and deteriorate.

Now you have the knowledge to store your hummus in a few different places! You’ll be enjoying your chickpea delight for as long as you can now.

How To Tell if Your Hummus Has Gone Bad

It’s very important that you understand how to recognize a tub of hummus that has gone bad, so that you or someone else doesn’t get sick. No matter what, if in doubt, throw it out.

Check the smell: Like with a lot of other foods, if your hummus smells off, it has probably gone bad. Familiarize yourself with how normal hummus smells, so that you can recognize an off smell. If your hummus smells sour, it has probably started to ferment and needs to be thrown away.

Inspect the hummus: If your hummus is on or nearing its expiration date, look it over carefully before dipping in. Inspect it for signs of mold or other discoloration. Even if mold or other issues don’t cover the entire hummus, discard it.

It might just need a mix: If your hummus looks oily or watery, don’t immediately assume it has gone bad. Give it a good stir, and it should be looking like normal again. After you do this, inspect the hummus again to make sure it doesn’t have an odd odor.

Frozen hummus longevity: Frozen hummus can last for up to a year, but keep in mind that keeping the same container of hummus for months on end could result in a change in the consistency or taste of the hummus. This doesn’t mean that it has become unsafe.

How Should You Store Hummus?

We’ve already talked some about how to keep hummus outside, in your fridge, or in the freezer. But let’s cover some of the more intricate details about how you should keep your hummus.

Unrefrigerated hummus can be kept on the shelf: As long as the container remains sealed, any hummus you buy that wasn’t in the refrigerated section of the store can be kept in your pantry.

Keep it airtight: It is very important that you keep your hummus in an airtight container to prevent unwanted bacteria and other issues from creeping inside. If you don’t have a lid for your container of hummus, plastic wrap will do just fine.

Home-made hummus always needs to be cold: No matter what, keep your home-made hummus cold in the fridge or freezer. Don’t try to store it in your pantry or leave it unattended on your table.

Can You Freeze Hummus? How?

As we said before, hummus lasts the longest when it’s kept frozen. If you’re interested in keeping it for as long as possible, follow these guidelines.

Stick it straight in the freezer: Once you get home from the store or finish making it, you can stick your hummus straight into your freezer. Just make sure you note the date of freezing.

It will expand: Hummus will expand just a little when you freeze it. For this reason, you might want to transfer store-bought hummus into a bigger container, or at least break the seal on it just a little bit.

It doesn’t matter if it’s opened or not: Whether you’ve ever opened your hummus or not, the shelf life of it in the freezer doesn’t matter. It only starts mattering as soon as you take it out of the freezer, so make sure you keep track of how many days go by after you do so. Unopened hummus, once taken out of the freezer, will last just over a week, compared to the roughly one week opened hummus will last for out of the freezer.

How do you Thaw Hummus?

If you’ve decided to freeze your hummus, you’ll eventually have to thaw it to enjoy it. Follow these guidelines to do just that.

Use the fridge: The day before you want to enjoy your hummus, take it out of the freezer and place it into the fridge. It will need to remain in there for anywhere from a few hours to 24 hours to thaw properly.

Put it in a bowl of cold water: If you don’t want to wait several hours to a day to thaw out your hummus, you can speed up the process by placing the container in a bowl of cold water before setting it in the fridge.

Frequently Asked Questions About Hummus’s Shelf Life

Even after reading through all of this information, you might still be curious about a few aspects of storing hummus. Here are some of the questions you might have, along with their answers.

Is the use-by date on my hummus the same as an expiration date? No, it isn’t. A use-by date is a suggestion for when the hummus should be used by to maintain the highest quality. An expiration date tells you that you must use the product by that date, or else it has gone bad. You should still aim to use your hummus within a couple of days after the use-by date.

If I never open my hummus, will it go bad? Even if you leave your hummus perfectly sealed, it will still eventually go bad. Hummus can still develop mold, even if it’s sealed. Keeping a sealed container of hummus in an area that’s too hot or too wet will also cause it to go bad more quickly. Always inspect your hummus before you eat it, even if you just opened it.

Wrap Up

Hummus is a super healthy option that’s great with lots of foods, from chips to toast. Hummus will last for around a week to six months depending on the storage, giving you lots of wiggle room! Remember that shelf-stable hummus will do fine in the pantry, but every other type of hummus definitely needs to be kept cold!