Do you follow Use by and Sell by Dates, and other food safety issues

Farway

got-it-spend-it, I can't understand why you bin out of date cheese, the whole process of making cheese involves letting it mature over time, another day or two is never going to make it poisonous

When I were a lad and rationing was in force, any green bits were cut off the cheeses rind and we used the rest, luckily this is not the situation today, but the basics still apply

I am talking about hard cheese here, maybe some of the softer cheeses would be different, but even Camembert types are better when matured surely?

phizzimum

Olliebeak wrote: »

I can never understand WHY things that are pickled in vinegar (pickled onions, red cabbage, beetroot etc) are marked 'store in refrigerator after opening and use within 6 weeks'!

I thought that the whole idea of pickling was to preserve foods to keep them suitable for eating for a longer period of time!

The top shelf of my fridge is full of opened jars of pickles, mustard, mint sauce, sweet pickle, jams/marmalades (again supposedly a way of preserving things).

Thank you!!!

sorry - I'm always saying this to people and they don't seem to believe me.

Horasio

CCStar wrote: »

I have some cream that has gone off - any idea how I can use it?

Anyone?

Otherwise I will have to throw it away

raeble

How out of date are we talking about here for the cream? Have you opened it? Does it smell?

There was an article in the London Paper last week entitled "Don't take Use-by Dates at Face Value". They interviewed a food safety consulant Dr Slim Dinsdale. Haven't got time to type it all up . Couple of thisngs that stood out
Cheese
Hard cheese can't really become unsafe, says Dinsdale. Keep in the fridge, and cut or scrape away mould. Soft cheeses and viened cheeses are more risky (they could be contaminated with listeria), so stick to the use-by date.

Milk
Has a use-by date, but pasteurised milk that has been refridgerated unopened should be find for days afterwards. Dinsdale says use your nose. If it smells or tastes funny, chuck it, but if doesn't, you don't need to throw it out because of the date.

Dried products such as pasta, rice and flour
Fine long after the best-before date, says Dinsdale, although you should always check flour for signs of flour mites (flour will look clumpy and discoloured) as they can cause a reaction that makes some people vomit.

Horasio

The single cream is the 23rd and has a smell and opened on the 23rd.

I have had cream last way longer than the sell by date occasionally and not had problems but wondered if it could be used like sour cream in cakes or cooked items etc?

pigpen

Farway wrote: »

When I were a lad and rationing was in force, any green bits were cut off the cheeses rind and we used the rest, luckily this is not the situation today, but the basics still apply

Common practice in here..

I just used a cucumber which was squishy at one end.. the rest was fine.. I don't eat it but noone else complained!

I ate my packet of beetroot BEFORE it went past its date.. which is really good going for me!

I have some stuff in my cupboard with 2000 dates!!!

raeble

If you're going to use it you had probably better cook it just to be on the safe side. Perhaps you could try it in pancakes as mentioned upthread?

annie123

Went to medicine cupboard to get cough mixture this morning, opened the bottle....solid!!!
looked at date best before September 2002!:eek: we obviously don't get coughs very often;)

Had a quick look round cupboards and found some tinned fruit also out of date by 2 years:o
It all went in the bin....thought 2 years was pushing it!!

lil_me

I consider the following - Does it stink? Is it mouldy? Does it move? Does it taste disgusting?

If so, it goes (or the effected part is removed) if not, I'll usually use it. I tend to sort of ignore use by dates....A lot of our fresh foods come without use bys.

Medicines I am usually more careful with, well for the children after being an assistant in a pharmacy for a short time.

Softstuff

The last thing I threw away was 1cm of off cream in the bottom of a carton.... that's the only thing I've thrown away in recent memory!

I often amuse people by how far out of date I'll go, but I've never made anyone ill with it. Relying on your own senses and judgement seems to be a much more sensible way of cooking, and much more frugal