According to the FAQ section on the product’s website, Frank’s RedHot comes with a shelf life of 24 months and maintains good quality for at least a couple of weeks after that date if you refrigerate it.
The product will generally maintain good flavor quality for a few weeks after that date if refrigerated. Refrigeration will help maintain its flavor; however, it is not necessary if you prefer your Frank’s RedHot® to be room temperature. The recommended shelf life from the date of manufacture if unopened is 24 months.
How to use Frank’s Red Hot Sauce?
Hot sauce is only good for people who like their food spicy and can handle the heat. Others should try to avoid it because they can get overwhelmed. Hot sauce can be used in a variety of ways. We are listing some of them down below.
Hot sauce can be used as a dip for fries, nachos, or just about anything. You can use it as a dip on its own or mix it with mayo to bring the heat level a little down.
You can also use hot sauce as a marinade. It gives a nice kick to the chicken or any meat that you are using. Add a yogurt base and other seasonings to a bowl, then add hot sauce according to the level of heat you can handle.
Leave the chicken overnight in the fridge to marinate and soak up all the spiciness and flavor from the hot sauce then cook it the next day.
You can also add a bit of hot sauce to any dish that you are cooking for an extra kick and heat. For example you can add a bit of it to soup, curry and even salads.
How Long Does Hot Sauce Last?
| Pantry | Fridge | |
|---|---|---|
| Hot sauce (unopened) | Best by + 1+ years | |
| Hot sauce (opened) | 6+ months | 1+ years |
| Homemade hot sauce (fresh peppers) | 1 – 3 weeks | |
| Homemade hot sauce (fermented peppers) | 2 – 3 months |
A typical bottle of hot sauce has a shelf life of 2 to 3 years and easily keeps for months past the printed date. Once you open the bottle, it keeps quality for at least 6 months if stored at room temperature, and over a year if refrigerated.
Those guidelines are quite conservative, and more often than not, your hot sauce will keep for much longer.
Unfortunately, there’s no way to tell how long exactly.
As I mentioned in the spoilage section, hot sauce keeps quality for quite a while because vinegar and chili peppers, both great preservatives, make its base. Because of that, it’s more about quality than safety.
If you store your hot sauce well (more on that later), and it doesn’t show any signs of spoilage, the best you can do is to taste it to learn if it’s still good enough taste-wise.
If it’s a couple of months past its date, and it tastes great, then go ahead and use it. But if it’s nearing the “expiration” date and already tastes so-so, it’s probably time to open a new bottle.
(Of course, the first scenario is the norm and the second an outlier.)
Plain hot sauce flavors usually keep quality better than those more exotic tastes that have gained popularity in recent years. For example, Original Red Sauce Tabasco retains quality much longer than other flavors.
The date printed on a hot sauce bottle is a best-by date that only estimates how long the product should keep top quality. It’s by no means an expiration date and has little to do with food safety.
That said, most brands recommend using their products before the printed date to get the best possible quality.
As I explained earlier, if your hot sauce seems okay, it should taste good even if you store it for a couple of extra months (opened) or years (unopened).
As usual, if you’re no longer comfortable with the printed date (e.g., it’s 3 years past it), toss it. When in doubt, throw it out.
Homemade hot sauce keeps for about 1 to even 3 weeks if you use fresh peppers, and for a couple of months if you ferment your peppers. No matter which option you choose, store homemade hot sauce in the fridge.
The above works for most hot sauce recipes out there, but not all of them. If yours doesn’t contain that much vinegar but includes some fruits as the base for the sauce, it’ll probably last only a couple of days, maybe up to a week.
That’s because such hot sauce is more like a typical salsa (homemade salsa lasts only up to 5 days) than hot sauce loaded with vinegar and chili peppers.
You should keep an unopened bottle of hot sauce in a cool and dark place, away from sunlight and sources of heat. The pantry or a cabinet in the kitchen that’s away from the oven is a great choice.
Once you open the bottle, keep it sealed tightly when not in use.
As usual, follow proper food hygiene practices.
I know that sometimes we’re lazy and prefer to dip our chicken wings or fries directly in the bottle. But, unfortunately, that’s a sure-fire way to transfer contaminants and bacteria into the container. And that might result in the condiment going bad prematurely.
Also, look for a crust that often forms on the cap. That can be an area where bacteria start to grow. Plus, a cap with a crust of dried hot sauce looks really gross. Always clean the cap when it gets messy.
Next, let’s talk about whether or not you should refrigerate your hot sauce after opening the bottle.
How long is Frank’s Red Hot good for after opening?
How Long After Opening Can You Keep Frank’s Red Hot Wings Sauce In The Fridge? (Solution found)
| Pantry | Fridge | |
|---|---|---|
| Hot sauce (unopened) | Best by + 2 years | |
| Hot sauce (opened) | 3 – 6 months | 2 years |
FAQ
Can Franks Red hot sauce go bad?
Does Franks Red Hot expire after opening?
Can you eat hot sauce after expiration date?
How do you know if Frank’s Red Hot is bad?
