Fridge or Cupboard? Where do Your Sauces Go?

Trying to decide where to store the ketchup in the kitchen has divided some households across the country in recent weeks. You might have noticed a bit of storm across social media recently, with people arguing about whether the nation’s favourite red sauce should go in the fridge or cupboard.

We’re not going to take sides – although if we were, we’d say those of you who put your ketchup in the fridge are monsters – but there are some things that should definitely be stored in the fridge and others that need to stay in your cupboard (like ketchup, you monsters).

To save all hell breaking loose in your house and condiments ending up all over the shop, here’s the tried and tested guide on where you should be storing food.

One of the main ingredients in mayo is fresh eggs, which – you might have guessed it – are best kept in the fridge. Whether you’re a fan of the squeezy stuff or a good old-fashioned glass jar, keeping your mayonnaise in the fridge is the best way to keep it safe to eat. Plus it stops it getting that gross skin on the top.

This is a bit of a tougher condiment to place as there are several types of dressings to choose from and only certain ones need to be kept cold.

It’s generally a good rule to follow that creamy dressings deserve some shelf space in your fridge as they can contain eggs, cheese and other ingredients that need to be chilled. In comparison, oil and vinegar-based dressings are safe to hang out in your cupboard.

Before you’ve opened your jar of jam, it’s perfectly fine to pop it in your cupboard. However, once you’ve twisted open that lid and have started enjoying jam on your toast in the morning, your jar needs to go in the fridge. No one wants to open up a jar of tasty strawberry jam to find that it has started to go furry, so keep it cool.

Whether you love it or hate it, there’s no denying that Marmite goes in the cupboard. Not only is cold Marmite wrong on so many levels, it’s also got enough salt in it to keep it preserved so you don’t need to worry about a warm jam situation occurring.

Peanut butter can be hard enough to spread on bread at the best of times – don’t pretend you’ve never had to eat a torn peanut butter sandwich before – so imagine how bad it would be if you kept yours in the fridge. Plus the fact there is literally no reason to keep your PB in the fridge so you might as well save some space.

Technically, ketchup contains so much sugar and vinegar that it doesn’t need to go in the fridge. However, it all really comes down to whether or not you want cold sauce with your chips or the sensible (and correct) choice of room temperature Tommy K.