Quick response please-would you eat sausages 2 days out of date?

Steve-o

I wouldn't eat anything that contains meat (or other protein) after its use-by date, because that's the stuff that harmful bacteria live on. Food needs to be stored at below 5°C to slow down the growth of bacteria, and (as a few people have pointed out already) it cannot be guaranteed that the food has always been kept below that temperature. Many people's fridges aren't below 5°C either, whether due to lack of knowledge or altering the fridge temperature to 'save money'. Sausages are a definate no-no in my book, because the surface area for bacteria to breed on increases massively due to the mincing process.

Frozen meat is another matter, and will last 'forever'. The quality of any frozen food drops over time though, so although technically safe it might not smell/taste/look too nice if kept frozen for too long.

Any non-meat/protein product is usually safe to eat after its use-by date, although the quality of it will certainly drop over time. Anyone for a limp lettuce & stale bread sandwich?

debsy42

I eat all sorts that's out of date, just had some cream that had a use by date of 14th October, smelt OK so I ate it :eek: Never have a dicky tummy, my OH reckons it must be cast-iron from all the crap it has to digest

Steve-o

dronid wrote: »

I tend to freeze sausages when I get them - I often get the nice ones at half price at Tesco. Then when I want them I do something I normaly do when Barbqueing which is boil the sausages from frozen until cooked - about 5 mins and then drain off the water - and a chunk of the fat and then fry them. Always works a treat and the sausages seem particularly juicy and don't split'n'twist - they hold their shape.

Hmm, I might have to try that myself.

cowbutt

Daisy_Bell wrote: »

Always Use your nose when first getting 'em out of the fridge! If they smell OK, then fine! With any meat, you'll know straightaway if it's off!

Not necessarily, and also, chilled food won't begin to release any smells until it warms up a bit. For an example, compare a chilled beer or wine with one that's served warm!

I always think the makers err on the side of caution with these sell-by dates anyway. (There hasn't always been sell-by dates you know!)

There haven't always been such long supply chains with so many opportunities for poor storage either!

But yes, there's bound to be some leeway in the dates, but not enough for me to chance it for the sake of saving a couple of quid. I'd rather rearrange my schedule. Each to their own, though.

Daisy_Bell

dronid wrote: »

I tend to freeze sausages when I get them - I often get the nice ones at half price at Tesco. Then when I want them I do something I normally do when Barbqueing which is boil the sausages from frozen until cooked - about 5 mins and then drain off the water - and a chunk of the fat and then fry them. Always works a treat and the sausages seem particularly juicy and don't split'n'twist - they hold their shape. Adds only 5 mins on the cooking rather than leaving them hanging around for the defrost time of 12 hours in the fridge. That way I never have to worry about them going out of date for a month.

I do that as well - buy Tesco's Finest sausages (and other stuff) when they're up to their sell-by date and freeze them till I'm ready to use them. Try roasting the sausages in the oven though, after defrosting them in the fridge, and they won't burst of split like they do when you fry them. Delicious! I think there's too much rubbish talked about not eating stuff (especially meat products) past their sell-by date. If it smells OK and is thoroughly cooked right through (it's the microwaving of stuff and not cooking it thoroughly that causes most of the trouble) it should be perfectly OK. People are too fussy about this sort of thing nowadays; everything being absolutely bacteria-free and antiseptic, etc., it's no wonder they get gippy tummies at the first sign of a germ and there are so many super-bugs about! I'm well into my 60s and I think I've had a gippy tummy about twice in my entire life! :j

bukup

add equal amounts of tomato ketchup, brown sauce and a tablespoon of curry powder,cook the sausage as normal,serve with the sauce.....

Steve-o

Daisy_Bell wrote: »

I think there's too much rubbish talked about not eating stuff (especially meat products) past their sell-by date. If it smells OK and is thoroughly cooked right through (it's the microwaving of stuff and not cooking it thoroughly that causes most of the trouble) it should be perfectly OK.

That's not really accurate. Even if all bacteria are destroyed a number of them leave behind toxins that are harmful to the body, which can then lead to food poisoning symptoms. _pale_ Off the top of my head I think it's CP that also produce spores that cannot be destroyed by normal household cooking, which then means that they can 'germinate' and start the lovely process of reproducing.

You might not agree with it, but that doesn't make it rubbish or untrue.

Daisy_Bell

'Steve O' said ".....That's not really accurate. Even if all bacteria are destroyed a number of them leave behind toxins that are harmful to the body, which can then lead to food poisoning symptoms. _pale_ Off the top of my head I think it's CP that also produce spores that cannot be destroyed by normal household cooking, which then means that they can 'germinate' and start the lovely process of reproducing."

Normal' being the operative word of course! If you cook anything throughly enough (I've always believed in long and slow cooking - results in lovely tender meat as well) all bacteria will be killed. I honestly think the trouble with the modern generation is that a lot of people don't have normal immunity any more, due to far too much use of anti-biotics, children being raised in disinfected germ-free environments, etc., that their immune systems never properly develop and they catch just about everything going or develop food poisoning symptoms at just about every little germ they come in contact with.

Skint_Catt

I've gone through a faze recently of freezing things not suitable for home freezing, and defrosting things which should be cooked from frozen. :rolleyes:

been ok so far but am I running a risk (it's all in date though!)

C xx

Steve-o

If something states that it is not suitable for home freezing, chances are that it has already been frozen and unfrozen somewhere down the line. Home freezing it again will affect the quality of the food, but whether it makes it unplatable is down to individual choice (and the dish it's used in).

The danger with meat & shellfish is the bacteria present on the food, and in the food (in the case of things like sausages). If the food has been stored below 5°C then bacteria would have been reproducing at a very slow rate, and so freezing the food means that it already has a nice colony of bacteria on it waiting to spring into life upon defrosting. That shouldn't be too much of a problem, as long as the food is then heated to at least 72°C when cooking (all parts of the food).

All well and good.

The danger lies in the TYPE of bacteria that were/are present: some bacteria produce toxins that are not destroyed by the cooking process, other bacteria produce spores that needs to be heated to over 125°C (off the top of my head) to be destroyed and that is not easy to achieve with normal cooking (no matter how long it's left boiling away), and the bacteria on shelfish are a definate no-no.

Bottom line, don't give any dodgy foods to the 'at risk' groups: small children, elderly, and ill people. Other than that, it's down to what you personally decide to eat.

DO NOT refreeze shelfish. It's perhaps THE most dangerous food when it comes to food poisoning risks. Better to throw it away when in doubt.

You can freeze and defrost veg until the cows come home, and it'll still be safe. It'll be mush, but safe mush.