Expired stuff in your fridge

[Rocklobster]

We are getting a new refrigerator today so we were cleaning it out this morning. It's not the first time we've purged it. I couldn't believe how many jars or containers in there that were either expired or we didn't want any more. I love to food shop so I am always trying new things. We got a whole green garbage bag of jars and containers.(lots of emptying and rinsing before they hit the blue box).

I'll bet many people have a large percentage of stuff in there fridge that has been there too long but they figure they'll use it "some day", or they only tried it once and weren't crazy about it but don't want to toss it because they paid good money for it...

Our fridge looks empty now. I guess we'll have to fill the new one up with a bunch of stuff we aren't going to eat. Sounds like fun!

 

[creative]

Maybe because I lost my sense of smell (and am ageing, i.e. not having a brill memory now), I am organised about this issue.

When I open, say, a jar of pesto. I read how long it's good for and enter it on a food 'calendar' e.g. in 6 weeks time I enter 'pesto' so I know to use it up by then. It's just a piece of paper, divided into the next 6 months, that I keep on the inside of a food cupboard. I have found it to be invaluable/very useful so I am sharing this as a possible solution.

I admit to being 'caught out' though when it comes to dried herbs and spice jars! (A longer time frame bypass my 6 month calendar).

 

[larry_stewart]

Same thing happened to use about a year ago. We thought the fridge was crapping out, so we had to empty it, and store what we were keeping in our ' over flow' fridge in the garage.

When all said and done, so much was either expired or crap we won't use. Another large percentage was condiments that I tried once for a specific recipe and no longer have much use for ( I guess the recipe wasn't that good )

Like yours, our fridge looked so empty, now only containing the necessities.
It took a good 3 + Months just to fill it again. It really amaze me how little I really need to go on with my day to day/ week to week culinary needs.

btw, thanks for reminding me, I have a pot of soup in the over flow fridge that needs to be tossed. ( the bad thing about having a fridge that you don't necessarily used every day, is things get lost or forgotten about out there.

 

[Aunt Bea]

At my house the only problem item is salad dressing, purchased on a deal with a double coupon!

I try to resist buying them and tell myself I can do a better job but they sneak into the refrigerator and hide behind the giant jar of Claussen dill pickles until I find them and use or toss them. When I do use them they rarely end up on a salad, they get used in everything from a marinade to a meatloaf.

 

[Addie]

A jar of capers. Only five years past the expiration date. For me it is the bottom shelf on the door and the crisper drawers. And right now I have two jars of mayo that are both open. Plus the new one in the cabinet. I only use it mainly for sandwiches. And that may be every six months. But summer will be here soon along with macaroni and potato salad.

I should look in the crisper drawers at least once a week. But I don't.

 

[CraigC]

We do a fridge and freezer flush every now and then. The freezer in particular, it usually involves asking each other "Do you know what this is?"

 

[Cheryl J]

I just did a small purge a couple of months ago. Living alone, I try to be careful with buying condiments unless it's something vinegar based that has a longer life. And of course the must haves such as mayo, mustards, relishes. My weakness is Marie's Ranch Dressing, so when I buy it I just figure I'll be having a lot of salads for the next few weeks and as AB said, it sometimes makes its way into other dishes.

Same with fresh herbs, too - when I buy cilantro for example, it's rarely for one meal in mind - I'll usually use it up that week for pico de gallo, tacos, burritos, guacamole, quesadillas, etc. Fresh herbs aren't all that spendy unless I use a few leaves of it and end up throwing the rest away.

Fresh fruits and veggies go pretty quick around here, but sometimes something in the crisper will get forgotten and need to be tossed.

Congrats on your new fridge, Rock!

 

[Andy M.]

We last did a purge when we got our new fridge. We probably should do it again.

What I really have to do is clean out and defrost the freezer in the basement.

 

[medtran49]

We last did a purge when we got our new fridge. We probably should do it again.

What I really have to do is clean out and defrost the freezer in the basement.

We did that right before we moved (so we wouldn't have to move the ice/frost build-up). Yet, we still managed to have a "do you know what this is?" moment yesterday when Craig was looking through the deep freeze. We've been trying NOT to stick things in the freezer without them being labeled but sometimes do.

When I emptied the fridge at the old place I threw out tons of stuff, mostly Asian condiments, pretty much anything I couldn't remember buying recently, but we still ended up with a bunch.

I bought another door bin for the fridge last week. Those things are expensive! I shopped around on-line and got the lowest price I could and it was still around $40, almost $50 by time tax and shipping were added. At least it gives us a little more shelf space. No more space on the door for another one though.

 

[Steve Kroll]

The problem I've found is that you sometimes have to look long and hard to see those expiration dates. Things in my fridge have had a tendency to overstay their welcome simply because the date is out of sight and out of mind.

I've gotten into a new habit. When I buy a jar or bottle of something, I now look for the date and record it with a sharpie in big numbers right on the top of the lid. Makes it easy to see at a glance what's old, and do a weekly purge.

 

[Kayelle]

We do a fridge and freezer flush every now and then. The freezer in particular, it usually involves asking each other "Do you know what this is?"

Don't you just hate that?? It's the law here that everything must be labeled in the freezer with my writing not his! If it's his writing, it's still a guessing game.

 

[medtran49]

A jar of capers. Only five years past the expiration date.

Hah! Only 5 years, that's nothing. When I cleaned out my step-mom's fridge , freezer and pantry when I stayed with my dad after her accident, I found 10, 11, and even one 12 year expired things. Guess it's a good thing she never cooked much (and daddy didn't cook at all) cause who knows what might have happened to them if they had eaten some of that stuff. And I wasn't being nosy, knew I was going to be there for a long while and was trying to use what she had to make meals for me and my dad.

Since I know some of the rest of you have parents getting on up there, might be worth offering to clean out their fridge/pantry when you are visitng. I NEVER dreamed my step-mom would have not cleaned her pantry and fridge out from time to time. She kept an immaculate house and kept the fridge clean, just never bothered to check the expiration dates for some reason.

 

[Addie]

We did that right before we moved (so we wouldn't have to move the ice/frost build-up). Yet, we still managed to have a "do you know what this is?" moment yesterday when Craig was looking through the deep freeze. We've been trying NOT to stick things in the freezer without them being labeled but sometimes do.

When I am going to be wrapping a lot of meat for the freezer, I make sure I have everything I am going to be needing even before I take the first package out of the fridge. And that includes a Sharpie Marker. I also cut off the outside label and put it inside one of the pieces of meat. It gives me the date it was bought and what it is. That label is on one side of the freezer bag, and on the other side I write what it is and the date of wrapping and into the freezer. I have a magnetic holder on the fridge and keep several Sharpies in it. They never leave the kitchen. If a Sharpie runs dry, I make sure I put it on my grocery list. I know, they cost more at the grocery store, but it saves my sanity.

I place the Sharpie holder on the back of the counter where I am working along with the wrap and freezer bags. One package of meat comes out of the fridge, cut off the label, wrap, and place in freezer bag. Mark freezer bag. Put in freezer. I have it down to a science.

Sometimes the freezer is so full, and yet I still buy more meat, even though I don't need it. Can't pass by a really good sale. So I empty the freezer and place the new stuff at the back. The oldest stuff comes up front and gets used first.

After 60 years of keeping house, I have some hard and fast rules. Sharpies for the kitchen, stay in the kitchen. The manual can opener (in case of power outage) has it own drawer. The kitchen scissors have their own drawer and not to be confused with my sewing scissors. And lastly, you walk in the door with the house key in your hand and immediately put it where it belongs. Not a lot of rules, but they have helped me keep my sanity.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

We just cleaned ours out yesterday, and found some mustard that expired last month.

A jar of cat whiskers doesn't expire, does it?

 

[GotGarlic]

Don't you just hate that?? It's the law here that everything must be labeled in the freezer with my writing not his! If it's his writing, it's still a guessing game.

I'm going to have to pass that law here Recently, DH just wrote "Chicken" and the date on a freezer bag. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between thighs and breasts when they're frozen.

I keep several Sharpies, a pack of small Post-Its, pens and a roll of tape in a drawer in my peninsula for labeling. I tape the Post-Its to jars and plastic deli containers.

 

[Addie]

We just cleaned ours out yesterday, and found some mustard that expired last month.

A jar of cat whiskers doesn't expire, does it?

Collect enough and you can weave a blanket with them.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

Collect enough and you can weave a blanket with them.

We were actually thinking more like cloning...but that's a good idea!

 

[Kayelle]

I'm going to have to pass that law here Recently, DH just wrote "Chicken" and the date on a freezer bag. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between thighs and breasts when they're frozen.
.

Another good reason to pass the law GG, along with 'bone in", or "boneless" chicken parts also.

 

[Kayelle]

It's rare to find anything in the freezer unmarked, but I found a frozen baggie of something white. I was going to toss it out, but decided to defrost it just for kicks. After smelling it, I couldn't place the smell so I tasted the thick sweet sauce.
You guessed it...ice cream!

 

[Aunt Bea]

Hah! Only 5 years, that's nothing. When I cleaned out my step-mom's fridge , freezer and pantry when I stayed with my dad after her accident, I found 10, 11, and even one 12 year expired things. Guess it's a good thing she never cooked much (and daddy didn't cook at all) cause who knows what might have happened to them if they had eaten some of that stuff. And I wasn't being nosy, knew I was going to be there for a long while and was trying to use what she had to make meals for me and my dad.

Since I know some of the rest of you have parents getting on up there, might be worth offering to clean out their fridge/pantry when you are visitng. I NEVER dreamed my step-mom would have not cleaned her pantry and fridge out from time to time. She kept an immaculate house and kept the fridge clean, just never bothered to check the expiration dates for some reason.

Great suggestion!

My mother had low vision and was the same way. If mom could find an empty spot in the refrigerator or the pantry she just kept putting stuff in. She was amazed at how much easier her day to day routine was when she allowed me to do a purge and quick inspection on marketing day.