Ketchup - Storage and Uses

[The Amish Tyrant]

I use ketchup occasionally, such as for fries and some burgers. Ketchup is also a secret ingredient used sparingly to bring out the umami in some dishes that you normally wouldn't expect (like chicken soup - trust me on this).

My favorite brand is Hunt's, but Heinz is also great. I keep ketchup and other condiments in the fridge (and I am a condiment junkie). However, others leave ketchup in the pantry. Heinz just went on record saying ketchup belongs in the fridge (see link below).

Where do you keep ketchup? What's your favorite brand? What different dishes do you use it on/in?

Should you keep ketchup in the fridge? Heinz settles the age-old debate

To refrigerate, or not to refrigerate, that is the question.

www.today.com

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

I tend keep my ketchup in the garbage can, it’s chief use in our home is as a trash bag interior coating.

I do however keep my mustard refrigerated, but I keep my Sriracha in the cabinet at room temp.

Sriracha is the stand in for ketchup in my house.

 

[brian64]

I'm just going to preemptively post this before some cretin shows up saying he puts it on hotdogs.

 

[Kobold]

We keep our ketchup in the refrigerator. Don’t really have a favorite brand since I rarely eat it but we got through a ton of it a month because my kids love it and drown everything in it. Sometimes I put a little on my fries or tater tots and burgers. I like mustard on my hot dogs but you know what works really well with hot dogs is kimchi and cream cheese. So good.

 

[coming to_falling too]

I'm just going to preemptively post this before some cretin shows up saying he puts it on hotdogs.

I work at a place that outputs so much mustard everyday I can't even stand the smell of it. Ketchup on dogs, for me =P

 

[ThermionicScott]

I can't help but wonder if the Heinz post is a liability thing. Like, under most conditions, the sugar and acidity would be enough to preserve it long enough to use it up, but they don't want to be on the hook if someone left an open container of it at the back of a pantry for years in a warm house and discovers plumefuzz in it.

 

[woodsroad]

My father used to make ketchup, from his own homegrown tomatoes.
When I was moving out the house, headed for college, I was looking for blankets in the storage closet downstairs and came across a cache of his savory collation, all bottled up nicely in recycled Heinz bottles. It had been there for at least five years, and was as yummy as the day he made it. I think we consumed the last bottle when it was ten years old.

 

[SBC]

I once did a blind taste test of Heinz, French's, Hunt's (conventional), and Hunt's 100% Natural.

Which is the reverse order of my resulting rankings:

1. Hunt's 100% Natural
2. Hunt's
3. French's
4. Heinz

Don't get me wrong, I'm perfectly happy with Heinz. I'm just saying that, side by side, these were my preferences in order.

Hunt's (both iterations) has the most tomato-y flavor. Very much like homemade ketchup (which I've done before).
Between the two, the Natural version is "cleaner" on the palate.

French's has the most sweet spice (clove, etc.) which is actually very traditional. If you ever get ketchup made by the Amish, they use plenty of clove and such. So it just depends on whether you prefer the clove flavors or a pure tomato flavor.

Heinz is just what every kid puts on his hot dogs and fries. Nothing wrong with it -- just generic ketchup.

P.S. Will have to try the chicken soup suggestion!

P.P.S. We keep it in the fridge. Didn't know anybody did otherwise.

 

[Pooh-Bah]

Our ketchup stays in the fridge.
We use Heinz, though I swear that the little fastfood packets of Red Gold we used to get with fries at a local sub shop were better. One of these days, I'll have to actually buy a bottle of Red Gold.

 

[K.E. Powell]

I like to keep packets of it in my car, just in case I have to hide out in the woods because I pissed off an interior decorator.

 

[Kobold]

I like to keep packets of it in my car, just in case I have to hide out in the woods because I pissed off an interior decorator.

That was such a great episode.

 

[K.E. Powell]

That was such a great episode.

It has lived rent-free in my head for years. The entire show's brand of dark humor is hard to top.

 

[Streeper541]

The only proper use I've ever found for ketchup is as a topping for meatloaf. It crusts up. Really nice in the oven.

My favorite brand of ketchup, it's tough for me to find in Ohio, is the Whataburger spicy ketchup. Usually you can find it at HEB grocery stores in Texas.

Other than that, I generally don't touch the stuff unless somebody accidentally puts it on my cheeseburger.

 

[scloyd]

I'll eat any ketchup as long as it's red. The brand makes no difference to me.
I remember this stuff being sold...NEVER bought it.

We keep ours in the fridge.

 

[AppalachianPipe92]

I'll eat any ketchup as long as it's red. The brand makes no difference to me.
I remember this stuff being sold...NEVER bought it.
View attachment 230902
We keep ours in the fridge.

To think parents in the 90s/early 2000s let their kids consume this poison... it's baffling. Though we didn't know what we know now, especially about food dyes.

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

Heinz/French’s - in the pantry.

 

[renfield]

We keep ours refrigerated once opened.

We also make and can our own ketchup. Made from garden fresh tomatoes it bears no resemblance to the commercial stuff. Orders of magnitude more complex and flavorful.

 

[Ebarber]

Refrigerator here. I could just never wrap my head around leaving it out.
I'm a Hunt's guy but have been really enjoying Lynd's fruit farm Jalapeño ketchup lately.
Lynd's are a local central (Ohio) orchard/farm.

 

[Ebarber]

 

[hawky454]

I love Ketchup (catsup). My local store (H‑E‑B) makes their own brand using sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, it’s good stuff. Don’t have many special uses other than my Grandmas Sloppy Joe recipe. It calls for some mustard, a lot of Ketchup (to taste), white vinegar and diced bell peppers and onions. I think they turn out truly delicious!

My Mom also loves her Mac & Cheese with ketchup! I’ve never seen anyone else do this. Wondering if anyone out there has tried it? I’m not much a of a Mac & Cheese guy these days but I used to eat it with ketchup too, just seemed normal at the time.

Also another good recipe for spicy ketchup. Add honey and Sriracha to taste, stir well. Add mayo for fry sauce. Goes amazingly well with truffle fries.