How long does cooked rice last?

Cooked rice keeps 4 to 6 days in the fridge and about 6 months in the freezer. The catch is how fast you cool it: refrigerate it within 2 hours of cooking, sooner if you can.

Food	Fridge	Freezer	Pantry
Cooked rice	4–6 days	6 months	—
Uncooked white or wild rice	—Opened: 6 months	—	2 yearsfrom purchaseOpened: 1 year
Uncooked brown rice	—Opened: 6 months	—	1 yearfrom purchaseOpened: 1 year

Fridge at 4 °C (40 °F) or colder, freezer at −18 °C (0 °F). Freezer times are for best quality: food kept frozen stays safe, but slowly loses taste and texture. These times are USDA guidance, not a guarantee. When in doubt, throw it out.

How to tell if cooked rice has gone bad

A sour or unusual smell.
A slimy, sticky or hard and crusty texture.
Any mold, often green, gray or black spots.
Rice left at room temperature for more than 2 hours. It can look and smell normal and still be unsafe, so throw it out.

How to store cooked rice

Rice can carry spores of a bacterium called Bacillus cereus that survive cooking. Left warm, they grow and make toxins that reheating doesn't destroy, which is why cooling it fast matters more than with most leftovers.
Spread leftover rice in a shallow container so it cools quickly, then cover it and refrigerate it within 2 hours. UK guidance is stricter: within 1 hour.
Reheat only what you'll eat, until it's steaming hot all the way through, and don't reheat it more than once.
Keep uncooked rice in a sealed container in a cool, dry cupboard. Brown rice contains more oil than white rice, so it keeps for less time.

Can you freeze cooked rice?

Yes, and it freezes well for about 6 months. Cool it quickly, then freeze it flat in freezer bags or containers in single portions. Reheat it from frozen in the microwave with a splash of water, until steaming hot.

Questions

Can you eat cooked rice after 5 days?

USDA guidance gives cooked rice 4 to 6 days in the fridge, provided it was refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking and kept at 4 °C (40 °F) or colder. If you're not sure how long it sat out, or it smells or looks off, throw it out.

Can you eat cold rice from the fridge?

Yes, as long as it was cooled quickly after cooking and kept in the fridge. The risk with rice comes from the time it spends warm, not from eating it cold.

How long does uncooked rice last?

White rice keeps about 2 years in the pantry and brown rice about 1 year, because its oils go rancid. Once opened, keep it in a sealed container in the pantry, where it keeps about 1 year.

Add leftover rice to ShelfLife when you put it away, and get a reminder before it has to go.

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