Does maple syrup go bad?

We buy real maple syrup, and I never refrigerated it.  Big mistake!

In our tropical climate, maple syrup needs refrigeration.  It doesn’t go bad, as in spoil, but mold WILL grow on the surface if stored at room temperature.

And then you’ll be getting ready for a tasty breakfast and your syrup will come out a little… chunky.

Ewww!

The fact is, when you buy real food, sometimes it spoils or grows mold.  Fake maple syrup (really, flavored HFCS) won’t spoil because it’s full of chemicals such as sodium benzoate that will preserve it until after the Zombie Apocalypse.

But maple syrup is expensive, and I buy it in 32 oz. jars.  I didn’t want to throw away so much syrup gone bad!  Fortunately, it’s easy to salvage.

Pour your syrup in a pan.  If you have one, pour it through a sieve when adding to the pan.

Skim the mold off.  Yes! Just scrape it out. Be not afraid.  This isn’t the toxic black mold that causes houses to be condemned.  You’re going to disinfect the jar and kill all the mold.

Boil for 15 minutes.  It will probably get thicker.

Be careful- boiling syrup is hotter than boiling water, but if it gets on your skin it sticks. Because it’s all syrupy.  So don’t burn yourself.

While the syrup was boiling, disinfect the syrup bottle with bleach water.  Wash out the jug, fill with bleach solution (add 1 Tbsp. unscented bleach to 1 qt. water), and shake it well so the it comes in contact with all the inside parts.  Let it sit for 15 minutes while you boil the syrup, then rinse well with plenty of fresh water.

You don’t want that mold to come back so kill all the spores!

We buy maple syrup as part of our Real Food Manifesto pledge and also because it tastes good. Check out my maple syrup recipes, Maple Bacon Pecan Pie, Easy Maple Nut Fruit Dip, or Maple Dijon Rack of Pork.  Mmmmm. So much better than Karo.

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