Production Techniques: Shelf Life

See the Shelf Life section in Chapter 4, for additional information; those guidelines apply to sorbets as well.

1. Hold churned sorbets in a freezer at –10°C / 14°F for a maximum of 18 hours or two services (lunch and dinner). If they lack stabilizers they can deteriorate quickly and require special attention and care during service. Pacotized sorbets should be processed every couple of hours during the day.
2. Reduce the time the freezer door remains open. Major temperature fluctuations will cause the sorbet to become icy (heat shock).
3. Make sure your freezer is working properly. A good freezer will have a compressor that is capable of preserving the ideal temperature (–10°C / 14°F) throughout a busy service.
4. Do not re-churn or re-pacotize sorbet bases. Even when they are completely melted, they will still retain a small amount of air bubbles, which will increase their overrun (volume) when they are re-churned or re-pacotized, resulting in a significant impact on texture. Churn only what you think you will need based on the item’s popularity or sales history. Check your sales reports for a week or 10 days, but also consider other factors, like the weather, current events, etc. To determine the exact quantity of sorbet to churn based on solid numbers.