If you’ve followed Clark for a long time, you know that one of his most controversial suggestions over the years has been to consider buying expired foods at salvage stores. You’ll typically save half off traditional supermarket prices if you go this route, of course it goes without saying that this approach is not for everybody!
While Clark’s advice is generally okay when it comes to canned foods, there are some other kinds of food you never want to eat past expiration date. Below are six suggestions of things you should toss immediately once they cross the expiration date line, courtesy of Reader’s Digest.
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Egg substitutes
Raw eggs in the shell are fine to keep in the fridge for three to five weeks. But those cartons of egg whites? Not so much.
Once a carton of egg substitute is open, use it all up within five days at the most.
Meanwhile, here’s a neat trick you can use to determine the age of the eggs in your carton.
In the same area as the ‘best by’ date, there’s another number. That number indicates what day of the year the eggs were cartoned.
The number, called the Julian date, reveals the day of the year the eggs were packaged. The number on the label is between 1 and 365. If the number is 001, those eggs were packaged on Jan. 1; if the number is 365, the eggs were packaged on Dec. 31.
Read more: Your store-bought eggs are older than you think
Soft cheeses
Soft spreadable cheeses are like a magnet for mold and bacteria. That includes ricotta, cream cheese or goat cheese. These kinds of cheeses generally last one week after opening.
Harder cheeses like cheddar or gouda, on the other hand, have much longer shelf lives. They can stay for up to six months in the fridge even after being opened, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Condiments in a jar
A glass jar in a cool fridge is not an effective barrier against the growth of bacteria!
Dispose of the sauce or spread promptly if you see water floating to the top of the jar, or if you notice discoloration or strange smells.
Use all condiments in a reasonable time frame and not past the expiration date.
And here’s something you may not have considered: Be careful of cross-contamination when you’re spreading condiments on a sandwich or piece of bread. By dipping your knife into the spread container, you move bacteria from the bread back into the container where it can grow unchecked.
Cold-pressed juice
The juicing craze is great for health, unless you let the juice sit for too long. The upper time limit you should keep cold-pressed or raw juices in the fridge? Seventy-two hours (three days). Two days is an even better and safer choice.
Why such a short shelf life? Because these juices aren’t pasteurized.
Fresh meat
‘Sell by’ dates on fresh meat mean you need to eat it or freeze it by that time. Remember to cook all meat to proper temperatures to kill off any bacteria.
Deli meat
Sliced meats from your deli counter typically last up to five days. Ditto for pre-packaged meats you buy sold in air-tight packaging. Once your crack that seal, the countdown is on.
If your meat is slimy or smelly, don’t take a chance. Just toss it, regardless of how seemingly fresh you think it is.
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