How long to keep stuff?

MissMuppet · How long to keep stuff?

I've just thrown out some stuff because either the best before date was nearly up or according to the jars they needed to be used within 8 weeks of opening.

Does anyone know how accurate these are?

Like tomato ketchup is meant to be used within 8 weeks, as well as salad cream! I also chucked out beetroot in a jar, pesto in a jar and jam... :?:

Windy Wendy

Well...my boyfriend has worked food production for a long time and he always says that the dates on packaging are to protect the manufacturer and that a lot of things will still be edible after the date.

I keep sauces, pickles etc in the fridge after I have opened them. I have definitely had things like ketchup and jam open for longer than 8 weeks with no adverse consequences. Things like beetroot, pesto and jam will go mouldy on the top when they past their best.

Please, don't anyone sue me if they get food poisoning after reading this :roll:

dingsy

Like Wendy, I've had things like ketchup for much longer than 6/8 weeks. If you have fridge space, then they'll be safe there for much longer. However,I often have jam in the cupboard, and it seems ok for much longer than that.

As you'll be moving soon. a clear out is probably a good thing, but the things would have been ok, I'm sure. If you don't use a lot of jams you can get little individual pots, which might be better for you. I just hate waste , and am known to plan meals around little bits of scraps rather than binning them!

Windy Wendy

dingsy

Misty

I keep things longer than they state, but usually put them in the fridge if they have been opened.

Nannyp

I tend to keep pickles, chutneys etc in the firdge and way past their date. I smell them to check on how they are before using.
When Mark and I did Atkins a couple of years back, we would have sugar free Jelly (Debcat :wink: ) as our allowed dessert. I put loads of the instant packets, in all different flavours, and now still have some. Their sell by date was Apr/May 2005 and I have made a load of Raspberry ones today.....if you don't see me after tonight, you'll know why :lol: :lol:
Mostly, it depends on the food...dry stuff/tinned stuff last for ages...meat/ppoultry and fish I wouldn't keep more than a day or two past.

annie130

Agree with others on this - I'm fairly cavalier about jar dates, but keep them in the fridge and have a good sniff when using. Meat and fish I'm fairly strict with - but even with them I've been known to sniff!

sparkymarky

http://www.food.gov.uk/safereating/

this website should give you all the info u need but as a rule,use by dates mean that a product should be used by the date stated on label -this because after this date,bacteria can begin to form which could make you seriously ill.one day over should be okay,more than that you r better off binning and starting afresh.

best before simply means after stated date,thew product will not be guaranteed to be of the same quality as when you bought it....foods you should be strict on include prawns,shellfish,chicken and one of the worst offenders-rice!! Rice should be cooked then reheated only once then got rid of as it can give you one of the more nastiest forms of food poisoning if u r not careful.also observe a strict three days then out policy on all afore mentioned items of food.
In kitchens,most food we produce is given a three day deadline to be used-there are exceptions but it would probably over complicate things to go into them now.

hope this helps-just a little knowledge from someone who could lose his job and get sued if he makes someone ill!! thats right-if i give someone food poisoning then legislature from a few years back now means i could have a law suit brought against me individually if it could b proved in court that i was responsible;this is why chefs are so careful what they put in front of customers!!

dingsy

Thanks for that sparky-especially the reminder about the rice. I usually cook enough to do another day, and reheat it which is fine. However, on one occasion, I'm sure that I reheated a portion for a second time.But, I didn't even get as close as eating a mouthful, as the smell was so disgusting .Assume it must have been because it had been reheated rather than any bacteria-fortunately it was plain basmati-but had it been flavored I suspect that it wouldn't have been so noticeable.

shanzi

Years and years ago they did not have "best before" or "use by" and I remember, we had tins (yes tins) of jam with rust on and me Mum still opened them and it was fine. Also other tins or packets in the cupboard we never knew how long they had been there, months, years, but none of us (6 kids) got food poisoning, never heard of it in those days. Nothing ever got wasted.

I never worry if something (non perishables) is out of date, I just carry on using it. The meat is always put in the freezer immediately after shop and the dates can be way out, but they are frozen anyway and eaten once defrosted on the day. I don't like waste so I plan around the perishables in the fridge, like ham for instance. :wink:

shropshireblue

Thank you so much Sparky. I cooked a risotto last week for a friend who came to visit. I said I would reheat it later and Tim could have it for dinner. She told me I must never reheat rice and you know what it's like when someone plants a seed of doubt in your mind. Tim did reheat it and he was fine, but we chucked the rest away after it got cold. I meant to look it up but forgot, but now I know I can reheat rice once and only once after it's been cooked.

Cheers :D

sparkymarky

shropshireblue

Gosh my post makes it sound as if I reheat other food over and over again :lol: Think I was relieved you can reheat cooked rice (rather than not at all)!!

I usually just reheat food once, never twice.

:P

annecater

I'm like most of the others on here. I tend to keep opened sauces and jams in the fridge and find they do last a long time.
Every so often I have a major clear out of my cupboards and am always very ashamed to find things lurking in corners that should have been either used or dumped ages ago!

SephieG

That reminds me - I must clean out the fridge this afternoon. I know there are some yoghurts a few days past their date. q20

I have an old wok that I fry up all the stale bread etc and iffy oil/fat in and put it out for the birds (when its cooled of course). They really need it this time of the year to build up their reserves for the winter.

and - in addition to some earlier posts about leftovers - we often have 'fridgebits' for tea and sometimes "experimentals!"

I can't resist a bargain in the supermarket when the perishables are marked down. I buy things I wouldn't normally buy like artichokes and fennel - then I have to find a recipe and adapt it to suit the other ingredients I have at home. The web is very useful for this too.

I found a website the other day where you type in your ingredients and it comes back with a suitable recipe - but I can't find it again (even in the History). Does anyone know what site that is? q25

masterchefwannabee

How about this one?

http://www.abc.net.au/backyard/recipes

I am always strict with fresh stuff - raw/processed meat, fish, shellfish but with sauces I usually just put them in the fridge once opened, Pesto is really good for doing penicillin experiments - mouldy in no time q20

Ketchup and brown sauce, for some reason I always keep these in the cupboard (for months sometimes) and they never go off!

Pickled things are another story - correct me if I am wrong but isn't pickling a form of preserving foods?!!!

I keep these in the cupboard for literally months on end with never any problems!

The thing i am ever sure of is how long you can keep homemade things in the freezer - soups or pies for example - does anyone know?

milkmaid

i do reductions at work ,when they get to the day before there sell by date
lots of people buy stuff and put it in the freezer ,for later ,food is expensive here
i was reaing about somebody who makes jerkie and they were told to make the date up as it had to have one
coal makes me laugh it has a date as well q19

i work in the dairy ,throwing away stilton cheese one day past it's sell by date ,but i also understand what you're saying about food posioning