Chicken: when use-by date conflicts with food standards advice

Loadsabob

My Christmas chicken arrived yesterday, from Riverford Organic. It was packed on 20 December, and the use by date is 25th, when we will be roasting and eating it. It was refrigerated on arrival and since.

Yet all advice online about chicken says it should only be stored in the fridge for a maximum of two days. Surely people buy chickens earlier in the week to use on a Sunday in the normal course of the year anyway?? Are the use-by dates when you buy chickens really only 1-2 days?? Surely not

I was debating freezing it, but would have to take it out almost as soon as it was frozen, to defrost in time :-| Presumably with a use by date of 25th, it's going to be absolutely fine, that fifth day after being packed (and I guess it was slaughtered not long before being packed...maybe a day or so...?). Anyway, I took it out of the bag it came in, put it in a new one. I've left the bagged giblets in, but wonder whether I should take those out.

Sounds like a naive query, but I was veggie for 18 years, and now only buy meat from Riverford and my farmer's market (just because my only reason for returning to meat was to support small scale and local organic producers), and I usually freeze everything the same day, so I don't encounter these date and storage issues much. Just checking here to benefit from others' experience. It just seems an odd contradiction. I have had a good scout about online for information, but it's always the specific aspects of your questions that you can never find answers to, isn't it?!

Thank you :-)

BexInLondon

The only thing I can think is that the 2 days thing might be talking about cooked chicken?

greenbee

You've done the right thing taking it out of the packaging and re-wrapping. I'd suggest taking the giblets out too - in fact, i'd cook those straight away if you're going to use them, as it'll be one job done and one less thing to clutter up the fridge and be forgotten!

I don't think there'll be a problem with keeping this in the fridge until the 25th. Make sure your fridge temperature is set correctly, and obviously avoid opening it too much and warming it up. I've seen the same advice as you, but I know plenty of people do keep raw chicken longer. Just make sure the fridge temperature is low enough.

Loadsabob

Thanks Bex. It's the same for raw and cooked. I know all advice errs waaaaay on the side of caution. I haven't frozen the chicken, so will just be going by the use-by date, which I'm sure will be fine, and of course cooking it as thoroughly as always. I just thought this must be a commonly-encountered contradiction.

Loadsabob

Thanks Greenbee, will take the giblets out when I get home. If I'd have thought, I'd have done that last night and had the liver, as that's quite a nice treat. Perhaps its best to make a giblet broth tonight for the basis of Friday's gravy. Guess I can freeze that for 48 hours, and like you say, one job done, less in the fridge :-)

zzzLazyDaisy

If you are concerned you can always cook it on 24th (wait... that's tomorrow :eek:)

By the time you've sliced it, brought it to room temperature and covered it with hot gravy, bread sauce, roasties etc, and plied the diners with alcohol, no-one will notice

greenbee

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

If you are concerned you can always cook it on 24th (wait... that's tomorrow :eek:)

By the time you've sliced it, brought it to room temperature and covered it with hot gravy, bread sauce, roasties etc, and plied the diners with alcohol, no-one will notice

Tomorrow's the 23rd... or I wouldn't be working today

HannahIOW

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

you can always cook it on 24th (wait... that's tomorrow

You just gave me a heart attack! :rotfl:

greenbee

HannahIOW wrote: »

You just gave me a heart attack! :rotfl:

Me too... and yes, I did go and check!

Loadsabob

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

If you are concerned you can always cook it on 24th (wait... that's tomorrow :eek:)

Scaring everyone like that!

I'm not too concerned, more bemused by the general days-to-keep advice being out of step with poultry use-by dates. perhaps in the absence of a use-by date, the general advice holds, but a use-by date trumps the general advice...

zzzLazyDaisy

Oh some people can be SOOOOOoooooo picky! So I made a teensy mistake


:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: