shelf-stable

[shelf-stey-buhl]

adjective

1. (of food, liquid, or medicine) able to be stored safely for a long time without refrigeration.

   We always keep a couple of shelf-stable boxes of almond milk on hand now that both of us have gone vegan.

Word History and Origins

Origin of shelf-stable¹

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

Infographics like one from the United Way Family Resource Network suggest offering shelf-stable foods alongside the candy bowl this year.

Read more on Salon

For its fourth, flavor-seekers turned their attention to the shelf-stable dinner kit favored by yesterday’s working moms, thanks to the episode titled “Worms.”

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When her turn came, she showed her government employee card and received two boxes, one with fresh fruits and vegetables, the other with shelf-stable goods.

Read more on Barron's

Water bottles are stacked in the kitchen and tucked under her mother’s bed; closets are packed with canned and shelf-stable foods, some marked to last until 2054.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Gelatin wasn’t a punchline; it was progress, the same way Tang was progress, the same way a shelf-stable “cheese food” promised modernity.

Read more on Salon