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03-13-2015, 05:09 PM
Re: (...)
Hey All,
I just discovered a quart of Veal stock in the recess of my corner cabinet that has a "Best When Used By Date" of January 2014. It's intact and was not exposed to sun or any heat - actually mostly cold during the winter - what say ye? Use it or not?
It's actually made from beef and veal.
Barbara
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Then find someone whose life has given them vodka.
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Piddle, Barbara, I don't want to say it's good and then you get sick. I guess I'd have to say dump it.
Anxious to hear what others say or have done.
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It's Kitchen Basics stock. I needed a quart of beef broth for tomorrow's dinner and went diving into corner cabinet for my stock starters and found it.
Wah.
Barbara
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Then find someone whose life has given them vodka.
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This may help.
Best if Used By/Best Before Date
‘Best if used by’, aka ‘best before’ dates are recommended use dates as determined by the manufacturer to get the highest quality version of the product, but are not aligned to food safety dates as ‘use by’ and ‘sell by’ dates are.
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And, that is ambiguous and keeps them out of trouble!
Retired and having fun writing cookbooks, tasting wine and sharing recipes with all my friends.
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As y'all have taught me..."When in doubt, throw it out."
Daphne
Keep your mind wide open.
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Quote:
And, that is ambiguous and keeps them out of trouble!
CYA!
"He who sups with the devil should have a. long spoon".
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Denise,
It's in a waxy carton = like a milk carton only much thicker.
Barbara
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Then find someone whose life has given them vodka.
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Gotta be honest, if it were me I'd use it. Those dates are advisory dates and "best if used by" not expiration dates.
Manufacturers determine a date which they believe their product will be of excellent quality if used by and a date for grocery stores to use to make sure they are rotating their stock. The date does not mean that the product is not safe or good to use past that date, just that the quality may not be as high as a younger product.
With that said, open the carton and inspect the broth. If it shows no signs of off odor or flavor it will be safe to consume. Generally, low acid foods (meat, vegetables, etc) have a shelf life of 2-5 years so it is possible that the original date on your carton of broth was anywhere from 2-5 years from the time of manufacturing. Most food manufacturers use the low number of years to guarantee a high quality product. In other words the broth is probably of high quality for 1-3 years after the printed date on the carton.