How to store dates
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How to store dates at home
This is our answer to anyone who asks how to keep dates once they arrive:
- Somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun.
- Or in the fridge if the weather is hot, so the dates stay soft for longer.
- They do not need freezing.
Heat steals a date’s texture, which is why we keep them chilled ourselves until they reach you.
Storing dates without a fridge
Dates keep without a fridge: somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun. The fridge is for when the weather is hot, so the dates stay soft in it for longer.
Storing dates in the freezer
Dates do not need freezing. Keep them somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun, or in the fridge if the weather is hot.
How to store Sukkari Mufattal
Mufattal is packed in a box that keeps each date's shape from being crushed, and stamped with its grade and harvest year. Once it arrives, keep it somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun, or in the fridge if the house is warm — the dates stay soft for longer.
Mufattal is a date that twisted on itself as it dried, keeping a soft flesh inside a firm skin, and keeping it cool is what keeps it soft for longer. What Mufattal means, and its grades, is in Sukkari Mufattal and Galaxy: the difference.
Among what we sell ready for keeping: Royal dates, ready to store, in a clear jar with a lid: open it, take what you need and put the lid back on, and the dates show through the jar, so you can see how much is left. And Sukkari Galaxy Premium, a kilo in a see-through bag that closes with a zip, so the bag closes again after every use.
Sugar grains on the surface of dates
If sugar forms grains on the surface of the dates, that is the date’s own sugar crystallising, not a flaw and not spoilage.
How we keep the dates before they reach you
Dates are alive, and heat steals their texture. They reach our stores in Jeddah from Qassim every day, we keep them there carefully chilled, and they reach you on the day your order is confirmed.
We print the harvest season on the seal, the way specialty coffee carries its roast date. You know how old your dates are. The Mufattal we sell now is from the 1448 harvest.
Questions people ask
How do I store the dates?
Somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun, or in the fridge if the weather is hot — so they stay soft for longer. They do not need freezing. If sugar forms grains on the surface, that is the date's own sugar crystallising, not a flaw and not spoilage.
Can dates be stored without a fridge?
Yes: somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun. The fridge is for when the weather is hot, so the dates stay soft for longer.
Should I keep dates in the freezer?
Dates do not need freezing. Keep them somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun, or in the fridge if the weather is hot, so they stay soft for longer.
Sugar grains have appeared on the dates. Have they gone bad?
No. That is the date’s own sugar crystallising on its surface, not a flaw and not spoilage.
How do I store Sukkari Mufattal once it arrives?
Mufattal is packed in a box that keeps each date's shape from being crushed, and stamped with its grade and harvest year. Once it arrives, keep it somewhere cool and dry, away from the sun, or in the fridge if the house is warm — the dates stay soft for longer.
How do I know how old my dates are?
We stamp the Mufattal box with its grade and harvest year, the way specialty coffee carries its roast date, so you know how old your dates are. The Mufattal we sell now is from the 1448 harvest.
Do the dates arrive chilled?
Inside Jeddah, yes: we keep them chilled in our stores, and they reach you on the day you confirm your order, chilled all the way to your door.
Read next
- Sukkari datesWhere it comes from, Mufattal and Galaxy, its grades from Everyday to Rare, how to choose, and where to buy it in Jeddah.
- Sukkari Mufattal and Galaxy: the differenceShape, colour, grades and price, side by side.
- Sukkari date pricesThe price per kilo and per carton for each grade, from the shop itself, as of today.
- Calories in datesHow many calories in one date and how much natural sugar, variety by variety, each number with its source.
- Medjool datesWhere it comes from and where it grows in Saudi Arabia, its look and size, and our prices by the kilo and the carton.
- Madinah Ajwa datesWhere it comes from, its look and colour, our grades and prices, and what is narrated about it, word for word with its reference.
- Types of Saudi datesEleven varieties: where each grows, how it looks, what it is known for, each fact with its source.
- Sukkari vs Ajwa, Khalas and MedjoolFour varieties from four regions, their shapes and colours, in one table.
- Luxury dates and Royal datesWhat “Premium” and “Royal” mean here, by four written criteria, and where to find Royal.
- Dates as gifts from JeddahFor a visit or an occasion, and for visitors to Jeddah looking for a Saudi gift to take home: the boxes, the tins and their prices.
- Shipping Saudi dates to the Gulf and worldwideHow to order our dates from any city in Saudi Arabia, from the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman, and from Egypt, Jordan and the rest of the world: the shipping companies and their times.
- Date trays for gatherings and occasionsServing trays in three sizes and three grades, and dates for giveaways at events and organisations.
- Ramadan datesFor the iftar table by the kilo and the carton, Ramadan gifts, gathering trays, and giveaways for events and organisations.
- Date sweetsChocolate-covered dates, almond Ghraiba and Kleija: what is in them, how they are served, and what they cost.
