I love that I'm getting so much credit for the milk bags when I had no idea what @k2k2tog was talking about! Hahaha I did assume it was a Canadian thing and thought I would just remain silent and appear worldly 😄
@k2k2tog I also really love that the 4L are divided like that. We buy 4L jugs here because its either that or 2L cartons and we go through a fair bit, but it plays into my theory that the milk spoils faster once exposed to air. I'm almost positive those unopened bags taste so much better than the 2nd and last 3rd of my jug of milk because they really probably are fresher! Plus milk in bags always tastes better to me, I don't know if its in my head or what, or maybe I just prefer the milk from Quebec cows than that of Alberta and Saskatchewan cows. Whatever it is, bagged milk is awesome and I'm totally jealous.
I cook raw meat the same day. If I know it’ll be a few days before I need it, I’ll buy it already frozen.
Dry goods and some medicines are usually okay 3-6 months after best by date depending on what it is. If something looks gross, it usually is and we throw it away without hesitation.
So, you do you, but you are actually not supposed to cut the mold off and carry on. What you see on the surface is the reproductive part. There is still mold rooted in the entire rest of whatever you have. If you have an entire loaf of bread and you see one teeny spot of mold, the whole loaf is moldy, regardless of if you can see it or not. I also grew up in a cut the mold off household and I did follow it until I learned how mold actually works in food, so now I toss it all. I don't like wasting food but I don't feel the need to ingest mold.
There are some foods that you can cut off and eat, denser ones are alright since it's harder for the mold to penetrate - generally hard fruits and cheese. At the bottom of this webpage, there is a list of what to cut off and carry on, and what to discard:
@DuchessOfCambridge I feel like I'm ok ingesting cheese mold because, you know, some cheeses are purposely moldy 🤪 I'm totally aware its not the same, but like you said with cheeses the mold doesn't penetrate as easily so maybe it really isn't that bad. Lol.
@mcewen3 I'm not gonna stop you, but here's what it says about purposely moldy cheeses! You're also in Canada though so maybe you DGAF what the USDA says anyway
Cheese made with mold (such as Roquefort, blue, Gorgonzola, Stilton, Brie, Camembert)
Discard soft cheeses such as Brie and Camembert if they contain molds that are not a part of the manufacturing process. If surface mold is on hard cheeses such as Gorgonzola and Stilton, cut off mold at least 1 inch around and below the mold spot and handle like hard cheese (above).
Molds that are not a part of the manufacturing process can be dangerous.
@DuchessOfCambridge I wasn't really advising people to eat moldy cheese so much as commenting that my upbringing made me more lax about expired food than my husband or some others on the thread. When I think about "moldy cheese" I'm also mostly calling to mind a hard cheese like cheddar, and specifically a big old block of cheddar with just some mold on one end. I still do think that's fine to cut off a chunk and keep the rest, but my husband makes me throw it away anyway. For the other foods I said were fine "expired" - I meant stuff like yogurt, but not if it's moldy. Only if it's looking and smelling fine and/or (even better) hasn't been opened yet.
^^ @DuchessOfCambridge I should have added that I only cut mold off of hard cheese, not soft ones. I do play fast and loose with Best Before dates, but I toss stuff that is moldy.
I generally look to Health Canada for my guidelines, but don't mind taking them from the USDA occasionally too
@misskimsue I wasn't trying to call you out, I just quickly read through the thread and was like "I used to cut mold off bread but then I learned this so I wanted to share!" I too would keep something like hard cheddar (when not pregnant because I'm crazy). When not pregnant I will also eat expired yogurt and sour cream etc as long as it's fine. Milk gets the sniff test from me but our milk seems to smell bad the day before it expires so I make H taste test and he's spat it out a few times
I still think milk in a bag is weird! My old BMB has a few Canadians and I can't get over milk in a bag
@DuchessOfCambridge in my experience, milk has a fridge life of about 3-6 days past opening. Expiry date means nothing after I've broken that seal. I've rarely had issues opening a jug of milk on the expiry date and using it for a few days past too. I swear, that air-to-milk thing is real. DH thinks I'm crazy but opened milk always starts to turn sour well before the expiry date for me.
@mcewen3 ours usually lasts at least until or the day before expiration! I have heard pasteurized milk lasts longer but I haven't tried it because I'm not made of money.
I am lenient about dates unless it's dairy or meat and the date was a long time ago. I'm somewhat careful about following the rules about when to throw things out after opening, such as with deli meat. With most stuff I go by look and smell because I don't want to waste good food. I don't worry about mold on hard cheeses and just cut it off, but cheese usually goes too quickly to mold around here. I keep my bread in the fridge to avoid mold as well.
I’m pretty lenient about sauces like ketchup, mustard, salad dressing, bar aqua sauce, etc. DH is really lenient about everything. I don’t eat most food past the best y date.
Its always a risk to eat expired or past best before dates which is fine if thats what you want to do. I personally would not give it to my children or while being pregnant i would not want to take that risk. So if in doubt throw it out is what i stick to.
Aren't best by dates just like, companies covering their bums? I always thought they were still good after but companies didn't want to be held liable should you consume something bad so they make them earlier. That could be not true though 🤷
@DuchessOfCambridge that has always been my assumption -- they are probably WAY more conservative about those dates than they have to be because they don't want everybody angry that stuff looks/tastes off.
I am super strict about expiration dates. Probably the only thing I eat after the expiration date is mustard or dry spices. I am also super weird about leftovers too and will only eat leftovers the next day or within 2 days.
Milk bags! I was shocked about a year or so ago when I learned that milk is sold in bags in Canada! I actually watched YouTube videos about it because it just so different! Does it ever puncture before you get home from the store or while walking around the store with a little milk trail?
@knarlytaurus I haven’t ever seen it happen but I’m sure it has once in a while. @k2k2tog would be best equipped to answer that since she uses them regularly.
We have milk bags by us in Wisconsin too! Unfortunately, DS is the only one drinking milk in our house and gets lactose free milk, so I haven’t been able to buy it yet.
On the topic of food (and maybe this is an UO) but I absolutely hate potlucks, especially if I don't know the people attending and who made what. I will not eat at potlucks, what if the person used mayo that expired in 2006? or left the dish out too long? or what if they have 25 cats? 😆 The only exception is if it is a small group of close friends or family and I know the food is perfectly safe.
On the topic of food (and maybe this is an UO) but I absolutely hate potlucks, especially if I don't know the people attending and who made what. I will not eat at potlucks, what if the person used mayo that expired in 2006? or left the dish out too long? or what if they have 25 cats? 😆 The only exception is if it is a small group of close friends or family and I know the food is perfectly safe.
Milk bags! I was shocked about a year or so ago when I learned that milk is sold in bags in Canada! I actually watched YouTube videos about it because it just so different! Does it ever puncture before you get home from the store or while walking around the store with a little milk trail?
@knarlytaurus I have gotten home and discovered a hole in one of the bags maaaaaybe once or twice in my 23 years of buying my own milk. It's super rare. Usually the hole happens sometime before you pick up at the grocery store and you can tell because there's milk in the outer bag. The plastic they use to make the bags is pretty heavy duty, kind of like the large ziploc freezer bags.
DD1: June 2014 - VBM4lyfe DD2: October 2016 DC3: coming May 2019
I'm currently taking some zantac that i found in our medicine cabinet that expired in 2008 if that is any indication on how I feel about expiration dates..... lol.
@merrylea the only reason I don't do that with medicine is because it becomes less effective as it degrades and I'm like I NEED YOU TO WORK RIGHT NOW. But I'd totally take it in a pinch if I needed it right away and that was all I had.
@merrylea the only reason I don't do that with medicine is because it becomes less effective as it degrades and I'm like I NEED YOU TO WORK RIGHT NOW. But I'd totally take it in a pinch if I needed it right away and that was all I had.
This is me, especially with kids Tylenol/Advil. I don't give it to them often, but when I do its because we need it to work like yesterday. Not taking any chances with a dull dose and a screaming kid.
Would you believe I had a dream about milk bags last night? I went to the grocery store and was like, "Well, would you look at that? We've had them all along!" But, no, just a dream.
Yesterday at work a coworker (a guy) was asking me if the venison meat wrapped in butcher’s paper that had been in there for 2+ years was safe to eat. I was like I’m really the wrong person to be asking and I would totally not eat that. Hahaha 😊
It pretty much has to look bad or smell bad for me not to use it. My husband on the other hand, he will not touch milk 3 days before the expiration date. And with meats, he wont eat it after the sell by date. So I try to keep him out my freezer, throwing away all my good meats.
@truth_trust I repack almost all of my meats before I freeze them anyways so no sell by dates in my freezer lol. Mostly because if I'm going to freeze it anyways I may as well buy the club packs and save some money so I just pack in into smaller portions that will work for one meal.
Re: How strictly do you follow Best Before/Expiration Dates on food?
Dry goods and some medicines are usually okay 3-6 months after best by date depending on what it is. If something looks gross, it usually is and we throw it away without hesitation.
There are some foods that you can cut off and eat, denser ones are alright since it's harder for the mold to penetrate - generally hard fruits and cheese. At the bottom of this webpage, there is a list of what to cut off and carry on, and what to discard:
https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/safe-food-handling/molds-on-food-are-they-dangerous_/ct_index
(such as Roquefort, blue, Gorgonzola, Stilton, Brie, Camembert)
I generally look to Health Canada for my guidelines, but don't mind taking them from the USDA occasionally too
I still think milk in a bag is weird! My old BMB has a few Canadians and I can't get over milk in a bag
Married: 8/10/13
BFP- 12/18/15, D&E- 4/8/16 @ 21w5d- confirmed Thanatophoric Dysplasia
BFP- 11/7/17, M/C- 11/18/17 @ 4w6d
BFP- 8/25/18 ~ EDD- 5/9/19 ~ DD born 5/2/20 *Lillian Hazel*
BFP- 10/9/20 ~ EDD- 6/21/21
Married: 8/10/13
BFP- 12/18/15, D&E- 4/8/16 @ 21w5d- confirmed Thanatophoric Dysplasia
BFP- 11/7/17, M/C- 11/18/17 @ 4w6d
BFP- 8/25/18 ~ EDD- 5/9/19 ~ DD born 5/2/20 *Lillian Hazel*
BFP- 10/9/20 ~ EDD- 6/21/21
DD1: June 2014 - VBM4lyfe
DD2: October 2016
DC3: coming May 2019
Hahahaha. I totally get that!
Yesterday at work a coworker (a guy) was asking me if the venison meat wrapped in butcher’s paper that had been in there for 2+ years was safe to eat. I was like I’m really the wrong person to be asking and I would totally not eat that. Hahaha 😊
Married: 8/10/13
BFP- 12/18/15, D&E- 4/8/16 @ 21w5d- confirmed Thanatophoric Dysplasia
BFP- 11/7/17, M/C- 11/18/17 @ 4w6d
BFP- 8/25/18 ~ EDD- 5/9/19 ~ DD born 5/2/20 *Lillian Hazel*
BFP- 10/9/20 ~ EDD- 6/21/21