How and where to store flour at home?

Storage of flour is troublesome only with complete neglect of the basic rules and technological features of the process, despite the fact that the product is quite demanding on environmental conditions. With pathologically high humidity and temperature, its quality noticeably suffers.

The use of inappropriate packaging will result in bugs in the dry composition. To avoid such problems, it is recommended that you initially select the optimal place for storing flour in the apartment and monitor its quality. It will not be possible to restore the damaged product even by sieving and steaming, it will have to be thrown out.

Basic rules and shelf life of a food product

At home, you need to adjust two indicators to store flour without fear of spoilage - it's humidity and temperature. The component loves dry rooms, so humidity should not exceed 70%, it is better if it is at the level of 60%. The temperature must be kept within 10-18ºС. Only under such conditions bugs will not start in the flour, and there will be no signs of mold.

Wheat flour

Tip: Sudden changes in temperature negatively affect the quality of flour. You should not always carry the entire package with the product from the pantry to the kitchen, it is better to collect it as necessary. This is troublesome, but safe for the component.

For safe and complete operation of the product, you need not only to know how to store flour, but also how much it can be done. If you keep the flour in the refrigerator, in the compartment with positive temperature, then the indicators will be as follows:

• Wheat - about 8 months.
• Rye - less than 6 months.
• Corn and soy (not deodorized) - no more than 5 months.
• Corn and soy (deodorized) - about a year.

With increasing temperature, these indicators significantly decrease. If there are some sky-high figures on the packaging with flour, then you should not buy a similar product.

Corn flour

Features of the choice of containers and rules for the care of the component

Unfortunately, only some housewives pay attention to the form in which flour is stored at home. The rest leave the powder in a paper bag. In this form, the component can only be kept in the refrigerator until the packaging is sealed. With opened flour, proceed as follows:

1. First, dry the composition to get rid of excess moisture and prevent mold. To do this, sprinkle flour with a thin layer on parchment paper and wait at least half an hour.
2. Then pour the product into a glass, metal or plastic jar with a tight lapped lid.
3. For a container, a shelf at floor level is ideal, but not at all on the upper tiers of cabinets.
4. Strongly smelling ingredients are not recommended near flour. The dry composition actively absorbs extraneous aromas, from which its taste and properties change.

Soya flour

From time to time, the component should be poured, dried and checked for signs of moisture so that mold does not appear. If bugs are wound up in the product, then it is best to get rid of the ingredient, rinse the dirty container, dry it and steam over it. Then you need to purchase a new product and this time pay special attention not to the prevention of the phenomenon.

What should be done to prevent the appearance of insects?

To prevent ubiquitous ants, bugs and other pests from flour, it is necessary to adhere to the storage rules of the component and, if possible, use the following recommendations:

Insects in flour

• You can transfer the composition from the usual containers into fabric bags. They must first be soaked in saline, which is also an excellent natural preservative.
• Some housewives put peeled garlic cloves in a container with a product whose pungent odor repels insects. True, specific notes can be attached to the product.
• A good effect is obtained by placing the container with the component in a bag or bag lined with dried calendula petals.

In addition, there are quite original methods of repelling insects. From ancient times, long nails were vertically stuck in a container with a dry mass, after which insects no longer appeared.

Each time before using the powder, you need to check its quality. A spoiled product acquires a sour smell and uncharacteristic bitterness. If the dry composition draws cold, this indicates an increased moisture content in it. Before use, the mass must be dried on parchment paper, otherwise the result will be unpredictable.