old things in cupboards

twentypenceoff

do you have old tins etc in cupboards that you always thought you would use but dont?

i had a tin of mixed veg dated 2000 finally i thought to use it as the tin was not dated, i gave it to boyfriend in a lasagne about a month ago he was none the wiser and said it tasted great i just didnt fancy it myself after buying it al that time ago but thought it was a shame to waste it

:rotfl:

exlibris

I have a tin of Lyons ground coffee with a pre-decimal price tag on it! I found it after the death of a aunt when clearing out. I recently noticed that the local museum has a shop on display so will offer it there for "sale" The had several products with old packaging.

The coffee is probably OK but we don't dring ground coffee.

SailorSam

I try if i can not to add salt to anything, so iy's not something i think about buying. Last week i was making bread and needed a teaspoon, and did'nt even have that, i'd just forgotten. I put garlic salt in and it was fine.
The following day found at the back of a cupboard five, 1kg boxes, bought to throw down on the path if it was icey.
Can now knock the salt off the shopping list for the next 20yrs.

lilac_lady

twentypenceoff - I wouldn't like to come to your house for a meal! If something's out of date I bin it and have never thought about palming it off to someone else in case I poisoned them.

Hmm - maybe I should have tried out of date food on my ex OH? (only joking, I think!)

twentypenceoff

lilac_lady wrote: »

twentypenceoff - I wouldn't like to come to your house for a meal! If something's out of date I bin it and have never thought about palming it off to someone else in case I poisoned them.

Hmm - maybe I should have tried out of date food on my ex OH? (only joking, I think!)

oh dont worry i would not give out of date food to real people, hes the one who eats sausage rolls he has left at room temprature for a few days and im behind him saying thats not a good idea.

just the tin was not rusty or dented at all and i know that tins have been opened decades later in experiments and they have been ok (with veg, i dont think i would have chanced anything with meat in)

NualaBuala

Great idea for a thread, twentypenceoff, It's so interesting to hear what other people do.

I'm not too fussy about dates, for fresh stuff I go by the look and smell.

I had a tin of sardines for tea the other evening - the date on the tin was 2006, I'm not sure if it was best before or use by. Their texture was not 100% but I was mashing them with ketchup so it didn't matter. Anyway - I lived to tell the tale!

[Deleted User]

Yes I agree the nose is always the best decider if foods o.k. or not .Although when my late husband was working in Khartoum in the Sudan in the early 1980s he said he saw some tins of corned beef on sale in the souk with 'A gift from the GDR (east Germans)and the date on of 1948 !!!Needless to say he didn't buy it.
I usually do a quick recce of my tinned stuff every couple of months to make sure things are o.k.
I'm at the moment going through my tinned cupboards and eating up my 'stand-by stock' that I got just after Christmas in case of snow

SailorSam

If you're going to feed your husbands any of this stuff, check out any of the small clauses in the life insurance policies first.

Butterfly_Brain

Years ago there were no sell by dates on tins and packets and people old enough to remember the 60's and 70's are still alive and kickin' - so I have no problem using out of date products, the date is only a guideline set by manufacturers.
As long as the tins are not dented or rusty no probs.

OOOps think I just let my age out!

Stephen_Leak

You might be interested in this recipe I've found ...

STORE CUPBOARD SOUP

Serves 2 – 3

INGREDIENTS

1 can of meat: For example, beef curry, braised beef, minced beef & onion, steak & kidney pie filling or stewed steak. You can use tinned fish, but wash off any tomato sauce as it will dominate all the other flavours. Don’t use chicken.

1 can of a vegetable or bean: For example, broad beans, butter beans, carrots, new potatoes, peas, red kidney beans, sweet corn or tomatoes. You can use baked beans, but wash off the sauce as it will dominate all the other flavours.

1 can of something else: For example, mushrooms. The idea of the third can is to add an interesting flavour or texture to the other two ingredients.

Ground pepper to taste

METHOD

Open the tins and drain off any brine or oil.

Put all of the ingredients, including any water they come in, into a saucepan on a low heat. Stir thoroughly. Cook until all of the ingredients are thoroughly cooked.

If you have a food processor, put the soup in it and blend it to the desired consistency. If you have a hand blender, put it in the soup and blend it to the desired consistency. If you don’t have a food processor or hand blender, use a potato masher, press the soup through a sieve with the back of a spoon, or leave it lumpy.

Season with the pepper.

ADDITIONS & ALTERATIONS

Obviously, the vegetarian option is to substitute the tin of meat for a tin of another vegetable or bean.

Add ¼ of a teaspoon of a suitable herb or spice.

TIPS

Used so far …

Chilli Con Carne + red kidney beans + chopped tomatoes + chilli powder = very tasty and very filling.

Minced beef & onion + sliced carrots + sliced mushrooms = OK, but a bit heavy on the onions.

Possibles ..

Beef curry + tomatoes + mushrooms?

Tuna + tomatoes + mushrooms?

Patchwork_Quilt

We clear out the food cupboard every year before Christmas, otherwise I can't get all the festive stuff in... But it does mean that I can't hoard things for too long