To begin with, your baby will only eat a tiny amount of the food you cook, so it’s a good idea to store any untouched leftovers for another day. You can safely keep individual portions of homemade food in the fridge for a couple of days1. Just pop them in an airtight container. Alternatively, you can store extra portions in the freezer. Either way, here are some safety pointers to follow:
- Food that’s been in contact with your baby’s mouth or cutlery may contain bacteria, so throw away any leftovers.
- Once cooled, store food in the fridge, or put it in the freezer, as soon as possible.
- Your freezer temperature should be 0oF (-18oC) or below.
- Freeze food in plastic tubs with tightly fitting lids or ice cube trays in freezer bags, clearly marked with the contents and date (you can tap out the frozen cubes of food into the freezer bags once they’re thoroughly frozen).
- Baby food should be thawed well before use – particularly if re-heating.
- Never re-freeze meals that have already been frozen.
