Do you need to refrigerate pumpkin pie? Ellen Shumaker has some food safety tips for the fall.
Here, Shumaker, a North Carolina State University food safety expert, shares her top tips for staying healthy during pumpkin season:
1. Storing Pumpkin Pie
You should refrigerate homemade pies that contain fillings with eggs, such as pumpkin, custard, or cream pies. That’s because they pose a higher risk of microbial contamination due to their higher moisture and protein content.
Most pumpkin pies that are commercially produced, like those you would buy at the store, are shelf stable because they have been cooked at a higher temperature. They also typically contain preservatives and producers have carefully controlled the acidity of the pie to reduce risk of bacterial growth….