How do i store vanilla beans?!


Question:

How do i store vanilla beans?

How do I store the vanilla beans? how long will they last? How do they go off? What happens when they split? do they taste different?
Cheers


Answers:
They last for a VERY long time if you keep them in glass. Mine are in a stoppered test tube. Don't worry if they split as you need to do that yourself for most recipes. Most of the flavor is in the seed. And she's right, if they get a bit dried out put them in a jar full of sugar. Vanilla sugar in a Latte!

in air tight container

I also store mine in an air tight jar. When they are dried out or old (they don't go bad), I split them and put them in my sugar jar. Everything I make with the sugar tastes superb!

Vanilla beans are seed pods of the Vanilla Orchid.
They are usually sold in a glass tube with a stopper.
To prevent them from drying out, keep them in the glass tube, in a cool, dry, dark place.

How long they will last under any condition depends on humidity/heat/exposure to air-light etc,..
Risks are mold, insect infestation, absorbtion of other odors, etc.

When they split, the very tiny vanilla beans will slowly dry out if not used soon.

If yours are in such condition, one of the best uses for the vanilla beans would be to make vanilla sugar. About 1 - 2 beans per say,.. mayonnaise jar of sugar. Just place the bean(s) into the sugar completely covering the sugar. Cover and store for a day or more.

No, they will not taste different. However, usage would be compromised due to the lack of moisture in the vanilla beans.
Their "normal" state or composition is a creamy, tar-like consistency.

At the Culinary school I attend we store vanilla beans in a type of dark liquor. Dont remember the name right now but I was told the type of liquor was important. In a covered container like a big tupperware dish. They can stay fresh a long time. Depending on the temp (we store ours in the cooler) and the tightness of the container they last damn near forever. When split the essense of the bean comes out in the form of little tasty *** specks. Dont understand what u mean by do they taste different. Do you mean the diff btwn split and not split? If so its stronger when split.




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