Do You Really Need To Refrigerate Tortillas?

Taco Tuesday only comes around once a week and it wouldn't be the same without your favorite flour or corn tortillas. Whether you like to use corn tortillas to recreate street tacos or flour tortillas for a soft shell taco, tortillas are a staple for this festive and favorite weeknight meal. The thought of a world without these beautiful wraps is inconceivable. Without tortillas we couldn't eat our favorite burrito, fry up a quesadilla, or make up a batch of our favorite chicken enchiladas. Tortillas are pretty essential.  

What exactly is a tortilla? Per Science Direct, a tortilla can be described as a flat bread that is round. Their composition is rather simple: Flour tortillas are comprised of flour, water, salt, and a little oil to fry them in (via Taste of Home). Corn tortillas are similar, only Masa Harina (a nixtamalized corn made with both corn and hydrated lime) replaces the flour in your recipe (via Give Me Some Oven). Science Direct notes that tortillas are so beloved, Americans ate about 120 million in 2016. The only baked product we ate more of was white bread. But per Al Jazeera, with the increasing prices for food in general, and tortillas especially, we've definitely entered an era of waste not want not, and knowing if your tortillas need to be stored in the refrigerator or can survive in a cabinet or on a counter is important intel.

It might surprise you to learn you do not have to store tortillas in the refrigerator, according to Epicurious. The food site notes that freshly made tortillas have a shorter life expectancy than those you purchase from the grocery store: Freshly made tortillas that you do not plan to consume within a few days can be frozen and eaten at a later date. The site goes on to explain that mass produced tortillas can remain fresh for anywhere from 16 to 45 days regardless if you store them in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Of course, the question of whether or not you want to eat a 45-day-old tortilla is a separate conversation. We think the answer is probably no, but to each his own. 

That said, a good rule of thumb is to have a meal plan. If you won't be eating up your tortillas within a few days, plan on freezing them and use as needed. Per Simply Healthy Family, corn tortillas are the only ones that you may want to consider storing in the fridge. The site reveals that corn tortillas really only stay fresh for about 10 days if they are not refrigerated. However, store them in your fridge and you can enjoy them for up to 8 weeks.