Pink Salt Shelf life?

[RedJada]

 Cleaned out the cabinet above the kitchen stove and came across about 10oz. of pink salt. This stuff has to be 4 years old stored in the zip lock bag it came in. Wondering if it is still good for bacon?

[Toker]

If it did not cake, it's still good.

[TMB]

I would good as well.   I mean other than caking up can it really go bad??

[Habanero Smoker]

I would good as well.   I mean other than caking up can it really go bad??

Too long exposure to sunlight, and/or too long exposure to excessive heat can make the nitrites less effective. When either of these occur, the cure usually doesn't show any signs of caking.

[cathouse willy]

I replace my curing salts each year just on spec.At less than $10 for a years supply it's a lot cheaper than ruining an expensive piece of meat.You say it's 4 years old, why chance it? Toss it.

[RedJada]

 Thanks guys, it's been in a cabinet above the stove, dark and not sure how cool at times. So just to stay safe I'll just get new. Going to be doing some bellies soon.

[Habanero Smoker]

I've had cure #1 that is at least 5 years old; and it is still good. If stored properly it should last indefinitely, though on one website that was selling Instacure it did give a shelf life of seven years. What I do when I'm in doubt I make a small batch of Basic Cure. Apply the Basic Cure to a pork chop, and cure it for about 8 hours. Rinse off the Basic cure, and fry at low heat, until the pork chop is 140°F - 145°F. If the meat inside the pork chop is pinkish, and it taste like Canadian bacon, you cure is still good.

Basic Cure (Small Batch)
1oz (28g) Pickling, or non-iodine table salt
.5oz (14g) white sugar
.15oz (4g) cure #1

Apply at a rate of 1 Tablespoon per pound.

[RedJada]

Thanks Habs, I have plenty of chops. I'll give that a try.

[Sausage Master]

It's not gone bad.

[bigredsmoker]

I know this thread is old but thought I would add my 2 cents. I have Pink Salt that is no longer pink. It's at least 10 years old. Just made 10lbs. of Bacon and it came out just fine. Don't think the stuff can really go bad. But that's just my experience.