YSK: There is no such thing as an "Expiration Date" for food. Stop saying it.

PigBeanUs

The U.S. throws out about 30% of its food while it is still fresh and edible. 

Almost universally, people think that the dates on food are "expiration" dates, or dates when the food is no longer good. 

That is incorrect.

Worse, it also implies that for some time *before* the date, the food is going bad. It isn't.

Bread is a good example.  Let's say it has a best-by date of 5 days.  It doesn't immediately go down in quality and ultimately become 'bad' or unsafe in 5 days, and "expire".  It remains perfect for the entire best-by period, and after that date, the manufacturer is saying it may no longer be absolutely perfect, but it is still perfectly edible.

Some time after the date, the bread might be stale.  Still safe.  Toss it in a container to be made into bread crumbs. Or toast it to make croutons, whatever.

Bread is a good example because we know it doesn't become unsafe before, say, meat.  But it may actually have a shorter sell-by period.  That's because it will go stale quickly, not because it becomes dangerous quickly.

But the same applies to meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, and fruit. 

None of it is unsafe on the best-by date.

The difficulty is that many people aren't familiar with the food they eat.  So, they toss it at the sell-by date. 

I know a woman who won't even keep food in the fridge past 3 days.  Any type of food. Incomprehensible.  I asked how long she kept prosciutto, and she told me three days, same as anything else.  She saw no contradiction with the fact that it had been hanging at room temperature for 18 to 24 months before they sliced it for her.

Happy Fourth of July.

CornfedMA

This way of thinking will likely garner more acceptance here, than many other places. I rarely throw food away, especially meat. Look at it, smell it and touch it. That method has yet to let me down. I’ve let wild game hang and age for months. No problem. There are many places where it was/is common to hang wild birds by the neck until the body detached, then it was ready to eat. Eat up!!

GregW

Beef such as steak I will keep. Chicken, on the other hand, I'm deathly afraid of. I won't keep it if it's out of date. 

Kayak

This is good info, and something we do... leftovers though, we toss after 3-4 days.

ColbyLang

As a baker, bread does in fact stay good way longer than the “best by” line. If you’re referring to white, sliced bread, that’s almost 21 days. It’s 3 days old when it hits the shelf. 

Once pulled from the grocers shelves, it goes back to the bakery owned thrift stores. It sits there, discounted in price, for another 4-7 days before being disposed of. 

nolaegghead

The best French bread (around me at least) needs to be used pretty quickly if you want a good poboy.  Turns into a pumpkin the next day.  Not that it's unusable post-pumpkin phase, but it gets better with age for bread pudding.

There are loaves of French bread that have an extended shelf life but at the expense of quality (given, this is a subjective definition). 

https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/eat-drink/article_3da3159b-7316-5006-a94b-c221624fe32f.html

Eoin

In France they'll go to the bakery twice a day for a fresh baguette. You can refresh by wetting the crust and then 10 minutes in a hot oven, but eat immediately.

SmokeyPitt

The rule about leftovers also bothers me (3-4 days in the fridge). I can buy turkey at the deli that was previously cooked and they claim has no preservatives. It is cooked at the manufacturer, delivered to the grocery store, sits in the display case until they sell it and slice it. They slap a date on it two weeks from today. If I cook a turkey at home and save the leftovers I am supposed to throw it out in 3-4 days. 

lkapigian

A few weeks back, in a darkened kitchen, i grabbed a Hawaiian roll out of the cupboard and some already sliced tri tip fro the fridge for a quick snack.....come light if day i see the Hawaiian rolls with a nice heavy coat of green mold...i just thought , meh

RRP

@PigBeanUs - this is a legit question - not a stump the band type. I love escargot and found 2 cans at the back of my pantry. They were a product of Indonesia for an American company in Medford, NJ. The label reads all natural and the ingredients listed are only "snails, water, salt, spices". Both cans are stamped BB:01-11-15. Both cans appear fine - I mean no swelling.

Since I love these swimming in hot butter, garlic and parsley I'm not sure if I could taste them if they were bad and wouldn't know until I had the trots the next day or died of food poisoning during the night. 

I know I can just open the can and let my nose tell me what to do next, but I just wonder what you might suggest as I was planning to enjoy a can on my upcoming birthday.

nolaegghead

Ron, from the FDA (government, so it must be bad/wrong)....but FWIW:

"Most shelf-stable foods are safe indefinitely. In fact, canned goods will last for years, as long as the can itself is in good condition (no rust, dents, or swelling)."

If the container integrity is not breached, there is no way any organism can infiltrate the metal walls the food is imprisoned in and multiply and make you sick.  No way.  The risk is the same as the infinitesimal risk of getting sick with a can that was just made, that is, faulty canning is extremely rare.

Quality might suffer as chemical reactions occur over time, but no biological activity will function.  Even the primordial soup needs minimally what the can cannot supply.

lousubcap

Regarding left-over brisket- I will push to the 14 day post-cook consumption (refrigerated) period on a routine basis.  I may have to continue to push the envelope as I have never had any issues.  
Chix I focus on cooking no later than 5-7 days past the sell by date but have been known to go a couple more.
Canned goods- I found (SWMBO occasionally buys for the apocalypse) cans 10 years past the date-no bulges=good to go.  Usually broths, soups etc.  
This from one who has been hammered by food poisoning at a party (some cheese spread-and several others impacted as well) requiring two liters of IV solution about 36 hours on.  Slow reaction, then the vengeance was administered.  
We all make our own assessment/judgment of the situation.  FWIW-

nolaegghead

Elton John wrote "Rocket Man" based on the perceived thrust after a bout of food poisoning.  True story.  I read it here on the internet.

nolaegghead

SWMBO picked up groceries a couple hours ago (pre-order online then pickup).  She complained that everything was picked correctly (for maybe the first time ever) except the hummus container was swollen up with gas.  So she threw it in the trash.

Upon telling me this, I said are you nuts?  That's still perfectly good, probably just a little fermentation or something.

She said you go ahead and get food poisoning, but you'll have to dig the package out of the trash first.

So I did.  And I ate all 700 calories of it.  Hadn't eaten all day.  Now my stomach is rumbling a bit, but that really doesn't mean anything.  Time will tell.

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap said:

Regarding left-over brisket- I will push to the 14 day post-cook consumption (refrigerated) period on a routine basis.  I may have to continue to push the envelope as I have never had any issues.  

You have a lot of leftover brisket that makes it to 14 days, Frank?  

RRP

nolaegghead said:

Ron, from the FDA (government, so it must be bad/wrong)....but FWIW:

"Most shelf-stable foods are safe indefinitely. In fact, canned goods will last for years, as long as the can itself is in good condition (no rust, dents, or swelling)."

If the container integrity is not breached, there is no way any organism can infiltrate the metal walls the food is imprisoned in and multiply and make you sick.  No way.  The risk is the same as the infinitesimal risk of getting sick with a can that was just made, that is, faulty canning is extremely rare.

Quality might suffer as chemical reactions occur over time, but no biological activity will function.  Even the primordial soup needs minimally what the can cannot supply.

Thanks for that info! BTW I did suffer and I DO MEAN SUFFER from food poisoning from some shrimp meal clear out in SC the night we were celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary in 1976. We had no insurance much less common sense to go to a hospital the next morning. But my wife drove us clear thru back to IL while I laid in the backseat like a dead man for 17 hours. We arrived home at 3:30AM.

HeavyG

Wait... I thought our whole economy was based upon the wastefulness of the masses.

lousubcap

@JohnInCarolina - True on a few occasions given there only 2 in the house now and I do disperse to the neighbors and local son and his family.  I usually start with something in the 11-14 lb (post trim-and sometimes heavier) weight so depending on the dynamics it can get there.  That is a good thing regarding enjoyment, every time.  Cooked one last Sunday and it is close to finished-next one is planned for the end of this month.  
I enjoy the challenge of the cook every time and the frequency means I sometimes need to find different recipients-never an issue.  

Botch

nolaegghead said:

Elton John wrote "Rocket Man" based on the perceived thrust after a bout of food poisoning.  True story.  I read it here on the internet.

Elton, or Bernie?  Now I need to watch a EweTube with lyrics...
 
Don't depend on can condition.  I found a 12-oz can of salmon in the back of my cupboard; no date on it but for some reason I remember buying it, in 1983.  No date on it, but tipping it, it sounded like it was half-full of gravel.  I quickly donned some safety glasses and gingerly took it out to the trash; can was perfect.  
I've had food poisoning 5 times.  The first/worst was a single thin slice of dried beef, left on the cutting board overnight.  Deathly sick for four days, lost 15 lbs.  Next three were a mexican restaurant and two taco carts.  
The last, was my first SNF ribeye.  My grocer started carrying them, picked up one, sealed, for $37.  Opened it 2 days before its "Expiration", and it didn't smell good.  I rinsed it, grilled it closer to medium than to rare, and it didn't taste so good (I'm a cheep bastid, I admit it).  I didn't throw up, but felt like hell the rest of the day (won't detail the events of the next morning).  
In the future, I'll trust my nose (and my ears), and I don't stockpile anything other than water now.  

Buckwoody Egger

PLEASE BE AWARE:

being ignorant guarantees happiness 40% of the time. 

Being moderately intelligent guarantees happiness 70% of the time. 

Being intelligent enough to know when to be ignorant and when to be intelligent is the only way to guarantee 100% happiness.  That state of mind requires constant self awareness. 

PLEASE PURSUE CONSTANTLY VERSATILE IGNORANCE / INTELLIGENCE. 

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap said:

@JohnInCarolina - True on a few occasions given there only 2 in the house now and I do disperse to the neighbors and local son and his family.  I usually start with something in the 11-14 lb (post trim-and sometimes heavier) weight so depending on the dynamics it can get there.  That is a good thing regarding enjoyment, every time.  Cooked one last Sunday and it is close to finished-next one is planned for the end of this month.  
I enjoy the challenge of the cook every time and the frequency means I sometimes need to find different recipients-never an issue.  

I was just giving you the business, Frank, the joke being that really good brisket tends not to stick around very long.  

I do briskets around the same size as yours - probably around 13 lbs on average.   We tend to eat it that night with company, then split what remains.  We'll save some for leftovers the next night, then vac seal and freeze whatever remains.  

JohnInCarolina

Buckwoody Egger said:

PLEASE BE AWARE:

being ignorant guarantees happiness 40% of the time. 

Being moderately intelligent guarantees happiness 70% of the time. 

Being intelligent enough to know when to be ignorant and when to be intelligent is the only way to guarantee 100% happiness.  That state of mind requires constant self awareness. 

PLEASE PURSUE CONSTANTLY VERSATILE IGNORANCE / INTELLIGENCE. 

Seems like you're advocating the judicious use of "playing dumb".  I'm coming up on 17 years of marriage now, and I have no idea what you could possibly be talking about...

Buckwoody Egger

Wise man!  Can you imagine how much more compromise / collaboration would happen if politicians and rallying enthusiasts acted like they were in some way married to their constituents and had to respect in some way dissenting opinion long enough to accomplish something? As if they there citizens of the same country or something?  WTF what am I thinking lol. 

TEXASBGE2018

I've gotten food poisoning a few times and remember that feeling to this day. I don't care if it's perfectly safe to eat, It's not the apocalypse out there. When in doubt I throw it out. If that makes me wasteful so be it. I don't eat leftovers of anything except maybe chili, soup or bbq so no worries there. It's a consistency thing for me. To me there's not much that tastes better left over than when it's freshly cooked.

JohnInCarolina

TEXASBGE2018 said:

I've gotten food poisoning a few times and remember that feeling to this day. I don't care if it's perfectly safe to eat, It's not the apocalypse out there. When in doubt I throw it out. If that makes me wasteful so be it. I don't eat leftovers of anything except maybe chili, soup or bbq so no worries there. It's a consistency thing for me. To me there's not much that tastes better left over than when it's freshly cooked.

I hear you.  I will say for us a game changer in the leftover arena was the vacuum sealer / SV option.  Pulled pork reheated in a vacuum sealed bag via the water bath is as close to freshly cooked as it gets.  

Botch

It's interesting to note that the spice trade was a significant factor in the development of World Trade, a few centuries ago.  Black pepper was one of the stars, and I'd read in many places it was valued to "disguise" the flavor/aroma of meat past its prime.  
I'm thinking our ancestors had stronger digestive systems than we do, and I'm also thinking we each can develop stronger systems on our own; as I stated above, a thin slice of already-dried beef almost killed me, while many years later a bad ribeye just gave me an uncomfortable afternoon/evening.  
But I'm Scottie-Rich and don't eat much anyway, so I don't need to strengthen myself anymore.      

SGH

Botch said:

But I'm Scottie-Rich and don't eat much anyway, so I don't need to strengthen myself anymore.      

It’s a good thing that you don’t have my money. You would starve to death 👍

4TheGrillOfIt

TEXASBGE2018 said:

I've gotten food poisoning a few times and remember that feeling to this day. I don't care if it's perfectly safe to eat, It's not the apocalypse out there. When in doubt I throw it out. If that makes me wasteful so be it. I don't eat leftovers of anything except maybe chili, soup or bbq so no worries there. It's a consistency thing for me. To me there's not much that tastes better left over than when it's freshly cooked.

I am with you one hundred percent.  Food is one of the great joys of life, and life is short.  

As an example, I’m not wasting calories on bread that is not completely fresh and awesome.  It’s never even occurred to me to look for an expiration date on bread.  

lkapigian

I still have my several year old Dodger Dog in my Fridge that i ritually take a bite out of in thecladt game if the World Series 

paqman

@Ikapigian 🙄🤔😳

Canugghead

Running few years behind