we had a block of Parmesan cheese, bein' all middle-class and whot-not, with a use by date of a month or two. FFS it's a year (or is it two) old to be even sold as Parmesan. And what about pickled onions with the label "refrigerate after opening" - they're pickled; that's the point of pickling to make things keep a long time. I'd certainly go a year beyond any dates on pickles unless blatantly horrid.
And a Viz-sounding but genuine household hint - save money on expensive Parmesan, and buy Cheddar instead but keep it a long time till it dries up and goes rock hard and is indistinguishable from Parmesan. Only half-joking too!
That said, it does depend on the product. Milk, eggs, youghurt etc - they're either off or OK, so dates are irrelevant. Cheese - well sometimes it does benefit from a trim if a bit too mouldy, but apart from that, good to go .
(red) Meat on the other hand, I'm happy with the whiff test. Should have been hung for a couple of weeks anyway before being chopped up, so no need for undue worry. I'd bin mouldy meat though, but seen others trim. Bacon lasts far longer, as that's the point of bacon after all, and tastes poor if it's gone over, albeit still perfectly safe.
Mouldy bread I'd bin, as I would bread that's not-mouldy but turned into a brick.
Things like humus or jams - I'd be very wary if there's even a hint of mould, as I'm given to understand that kind of mould can exude carcinegous toxins which soak in as it were - so I was informed by a food-science graduate rightly or wrongly. My dad used to scrape the moult off jams though, but still.....
And I don't think anyone's posted this yet:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4usAhEvMKZ4&feature=player_detailpage
Funny, satirical, and rather disturbing
. 10 days of oral antibiotics and 2 days of IV. Unpleasant to say the least. When you get knocked off your bike, don't land shin first on the frame!
