You ask “how long can cookie dough last in the fridge?” and my response is…
“3 minutes at my house so how did you manage to resist it to the point you have leftovers?!”.
Congrats my friend, you have willpower of steel.
We both know it, cookie dough is by far one of the best sweet snacks around.
That sugary, chocolatey, gooey texture is perfect for any time of year. (Especially in the winter months when ice cream just won’t do – which you can microwave btw).
And sure, sometimes you can even bake it and make actual cookies…if you get that far!
But what can you do if, for some bizarre reason, you can’t eat the whole packet (has that ever officially happened, seriously??).
Or you only want to bake a few cookies?
Well, you can keep your cookie dough fresh in the refrigerator – HOWEVER – the length of time it will last depends on a few caveats such as home made or store brought.
Some are going to last longer in the refrigerator than others AND it depends on if you’re adding anything to your cookie dough.
For example, if you choose to add fresh fruit to your cookies, then they won’t last quite as long as your standard chocolate chip cookies.
So, to make sure you don’t risk spoiling and wasting your cookie dough, here’s our guide to storing cookie dough in the refrigerator …
Store-bought Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
This depends on the manufacturer but generally, this standard cookie dough should be okay for up to 4 days.
Especially if you haven’t opened the packaging. If you have opened the packaging, then the dough will begin to dry out more quickly and won’t last quite as long.
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Homemade Cookie Dough
When making your own cookie dough, it can be difficult to work out exactly how long it might last.
But it’s actually pretty easy to work out. If your cookie dough contains egg, then it can only stay in the refrigerator for 2-4 days.
If it doesn’t have egg, then it should be fine up until the best-before-date of the butter you used.
Remember, cookie dough is a very simple recipe so you are only combining some ingredients.
The main ingredient to consider is the raw egg. This is what will go bad if left in the refrigerator for too long.
Vegan Cookie Dough
If you are putting vegan cookie dough in the refrigerator, then it will likely last longer than cookie dough with egg and daily.
Vegan cookie dough, whether store-bought or homemade, won’t have any egg in it. But it will have a dairy-free alternative to butter.
This could be dairy-free margarine or dairy-free butter.
If you have made your own, then check the best-before date on the tub of margarine or butter. You should eat the cookie dough before this date.
If the date is pretty far in the future, check how long the margarine or butter can be kept in the refrigerator, once it has been opened.
This is how long you can keep your vegan cookie dough in the refrigerator.
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Storing Cookie Dough in the Freezer
If you are concerned that your cookie dough won’t last in the refrigerator for as long as you need it to, you can easily freeze it (other things that freeze will are coconut milk, oil, and coconut).
If you plan to use the dough to bake cookies, then it’s a good idea to divide the dough into small balls and freeze them separately.
If you have space, you can roll them up and place them on a parchment lined baking tray.
If you don’t, then you can wrap them up in cellophane or beeswax wraps, if you want a more eco-friendly option.
If you haven’t added any egg to your cookie dough, then it is safe to eat raw. If you’re making it from scratch to eat raw, then it’s a good idea to leave out the egg (so as not to risk salmonella).
It’s also a good idea to bake the flour for a little while as this will kill any bad bacteria that might be inside. Then, you can simply mix it together and freeze it.
Either in one big chunk or in separate single portions. You can then defrost it or even eat it frozen like ice cream.
Or you can add it to ice cream to make your own cookie dough ice cream.
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Top Tips
So, now you know how long different cookie doughs can last in the refrigerator. To help make sure you store your cookie dough properly, here are a few more top tips.
- Wrap it up or store it in an airtight container. As mentioned above, cookie dough is a very simple combination of different ingredients. But these are all ingredients that are normally wrapped up or stored tightly. E.g. the egg inside its shell, butter in its wrapper, or margarine in its tub.
The margarine and the butter are kept in this packaging to make them easier to store. But also to keep them from going bad.
If they are left out of the packaging, they will be exposed to oxygen and warm air every time the refrigerator door is opened.
The egg is, of course, usually inside its shell which protects it.
So, to make sure your cookie dough doesn’t go bad too soon, make sure to wrap it up.
Cellophane is one option but you should try and find something a little more eco-friendly. A reusable airtight container is another good option.
Freeze the extra. We’ve mentioned freezing cookie dough already but it’s worth repeating. Freezing cookie dough is a good idea as it will keep it for much longer. This will allow you to make a big batch and keep it for another day.
This will save you time in the future when you fancy a snack. If you plan to bake the cookie dough, then freezing it will be fine as the heat will cause any excess water that has formed on the dough to evaporate. But if you plan to eat it raw, then the defrosted cookie dough might be a little watery.
So does that answer the question “How Long Can Cookie Dough Last in the Fridge?”. I hope so. 🙂
Hi all! I’m Cora Benson, and I’ve been blogging about food, recipes and things that happen in my kitchen since 2019.