Here's How To Tell Your Winter Squash Has Gone Bad

It's officially fall and winter squash is finally back in season. So, you grab your coziest sweater and run to the store to restock on the infamous Trader Joe's butternut squash mac and cheese and mac and cheese bites. If pre-packaged food isn't your thing, there are plenty of squash recipes to add to your repertoire. You'll have a few weeks to test out and perfect those recipes before these beautifully-colored and strangely-shaped fruits are no longer available at grocery stores and autumnal farmer's markets.

Luckily, winter squash has a decently long shelf life. Compared to other fruits, squash won't go bad within a week. When stored properly, they can actually last for several months. Some squash like carnival, acorn, and kabocha are good for a month. While sweet dumpling and butternut squash can last roughly three months and banana squash can be stored for up to six months. However, once you cut them open, they'll only be good for a few days.

With such varying storage times, it's impossible to remember how long each squash variation will be good for. That time frame changes even more when you factor in refrigerated or frozen squash. Despite this, winter squash can still go bad, so here are a few signs to look for that will tell you when it has.

Sight, touch and smell are the best ways to figure out if your winter squash is no longer suitable to prepare. Visual changes such as mold and dark spots are great indicators it's gone off. Freshly bought squash also has no discolored or dark spots on the outside. This change in appearance means your winter squash is beginning to rot. Another visual change to look out for is that it's no longer vibrant in color; your squash should never look like all the color was drained out of it. 

Since winter squash is always firm when fresh, any softened or mushy parts is a sign your veg has expired. It's important to carefully examine the outside for those changes in texture. Look too at the stem, which can also be the first point of expiration, getting moldy and or mushy. Sometimes the rotting process starts on the inside before it shows signs on the exterior. You can cut into the squash and take note of what you smell and see. Any weird or unusual smell and growths are never a good sign. So, if it doesn't smell right, get rid of it. 

Take note of the weight of the winter squash. When it's old, it starts to lose its interior moisture which makes it feel lighter. The change in weight and the dryness of the insides is another way you can tell it's destined for the compost heap.