Chocolate

Much like butter, chocolate is a high-fat food but with one important advantage. If you took a stick of butter out of your refrigerator and left in on a shelf for two months, it would grow rancid (develop an unpleasant taste and/or smell). However, if you left a chocolate bar on your coffee table for months, the chocolate would still be fine. This is because cocoa is rich in chemicals known as flavonoids. A food goes rancid when its fat breaks apart as a result of oxidation. Flavonoids  hinder oxidation, which is why chocolate doesn't go rancid on the shelf.
Note: For a definition and explanation of oxidation, go to the following:
 http://shelflifeadvice.com/faq/what-oxidation-and-how-does-it-alter-food-products

 

Chocolate Shelf Life
PantryRefrigerator
Chocolate, unsweetened18 months- -
Chocolate Syrup, opened- -6 months
Chocolate Syrup, unopened2 years- -
Chocolate, semisweet2 years- -
Chocolate, premelted1 year- -
Source(s): 
Boyer, Renee, and Julie McKinney. "Food Storage Guidelines for Consumers." Virginia Cooperative Extension (2009): n. pag. Web. 7 Dec 2009.
 
 

You must be logged in to post a comment or question.

Sign In or Register for free.