What You Need To Know About Storing Homemade Fruit Mousse

Classic French chocolate mousse can be a difficult dessert to pull off because of the many techniques you need to have mastered to mix the dish together successfully. But, luckily, there are some short-cut fruit mousse recipes out there where all you need are the ingredients and a food processor.

If you got excited about finding a simple mousse recipe, and have made an extra large batch of delicious fruit mousse like passionfruit and mango, you may find yourself inundated with leftovers. To find the best way to store leftover mousse, we exclusively spoke to two executive pastry chefs — Muhammed Ince of Fontainebleau Miami Beach and Meghan Brophy of Pastis Miami.

Both chefs had similar advice on how to store fruit mousse, with Ince saying: "For the best storage, keep it in an airtight container. It's best to consume it as soon as possible to enjoy the freshest flavor and texture." Fresher is always going to taste better when it comes to fruit mousse, but if you must rely on the fridge, there are additional tips that can help it taste great for a few days.

An airtight container is a must for storing a dessert like mousse, which relies on moisture for its luscious texture. Meghan Brophy adds on to this storage instruction by saying to use plastic wrap directly on the surface of the mousse. The plastic wrap prevents a hard film from forming on the surface as the mousse dries out, by acting as a second layer of protection from the air. Or, if you're concerned about plastics in your food, you can use parchment paper instead.

Lastly is the question of how long you can leave your mousse in the fridge and it still be worth eating later. Opinions on this seem to vary. Chef Muhammed Ince suggests two or three days; Brophy says four days is the maximum; but other sources suggest a combination of fruit and dairy should be eaten within 24 hours. Depending on the ingredients in your mousse, use your eyes and nose to help make a judgement call — but chances are you'll be eating those delicious leftovers as soon as you can.