to have eaten an out of date ready meal for my tea?

[abigboydidit]

T'was a rather lovely Markies number I found lurking in the back of the fridge. Use by 15th February. DH is horrified but not horrified enough to offer to drive back from the office and cook me something. Passed the sniff test so I don't see the problem. Am I the only one who sees best before etc as a guideline ?

You will be fine. If it smelt ok it will be ok.

Wouldn't even occur to me not to eat something just because of the date.. But I texted my friend to back me up and she says she chucks stuff out the day before they expire! That's just odd...

Best before means just that. It'd have been best consumed by the 15th February. Not that you will be poisoned to death by eating it on the 17th.

Use by dates, on the other hand, are a little more important - speaks as someone who us slightly paranoid about out of date food.

..this one was a use by... But been half an hour and I feel fine so reckon I've dodged any potential bullet

I think a day or two is fine, if it was something really nice (and smelt ok) I might stretch the rule to 3 days

You'll be fine, there was probably a good few weeks left in it

2 days over? Child's play! I go a week before worrying. If it looks alright, smells alright - it's probably alright

Sniff test? Then fine! But was it for tea or for dinner?

It'll be a few hours before your stomach revolts anyway. But I doubt it will.

I also apply the "how long it's cooked" principle. So a ready meal is only nuked in a microwave but something like mince can be boiled to death. Ergo, you can eat mince that's waaaaay more out of date than a ready meal

YABVU - didn't you know that ready meals have a very sophisticated internal system that enables them to instantly turn to poison as the clock strikes midnight on the use by date

Your friend on the other hand is completely bonkers to throw away perfectly good food.

Which year?
If 2012, fine.
If 2011, then I'd be having my stomach pumped.

DD and I wanted to make wraps for dinner but the packet was best before 15/1/12. They were fine - it was a sealed packet and not a trace of going off - I have a super nose and would sniff out mould a mile away.
I prolly wouldn't with meat but as we're veggie, we do it all the time

I've got two pasta bakes in the fridge where the use by date is the 16th normally I would chuck them out and df would moan that they'll be ok. They look bloody lovely so even though I can't eat them and I wouldn't give them to the kids I think df can have them for his tea (while I look on drooling!)

Oh and the reason I didn't chuck them when I discovered them is thanks the mumsnet jury, after reading on previous threads where everyone does the sniff test then says you'll be fine and that they've eaten sOmething far more out of date, well, you're still alive to tell the tale so it can't be that bad.

Oh just realised its only the 17th, it's not Saturday the 18th. Df and ds1 can have them. I thought it wAs a few day out of date.

What was your ready meal?

I'm sure you'll be OK :)

I'd eat it as long as it wasn't shellfish. Although I detest shellfish so I wouldn't have bought it in the first place!

As long as the clear plastic at the top wasn't all puffed up I am sure you will be fine!

Was a chicken and chorizo creation. Very tasty it was too!

Yummy :) Next time buy two and scoff them both

I ignore use by / sell by dates. Most things go into the freezer regardless of the dates on them but anything dried or tinned can be used for years afterwards. Scott's tinned food was edible after 50 years. I have some packets of gel powder (you know the sort you spoon onto a fruit flan) and their date is 1998. They are still useable and gel well - as they should.

As another poster said, the ates are guidelines only.

*dates

You know what? I'm really not a big use-by believer/worshipper etc BUT you should know that ready meals are actually quite high risk for listeria. I learnt this in college food qualification and safety jobby so its "official" not some Daily Mail scaremongering. In fact I asked the question in class why they were not contraindicated for pregnancy like soft/unpasturised cheese is if they are so high risk and the teacher said, god knows, because you are statistically far more likely to consume listeria with a ready meal.

So its more of a "high risk" food (despite the listeria issue) too because it is pre cooked (generally) so you are re-heating as opposed to cooking from scratch (as in some raw meat)

So the listeria factor plus the already high risk thing and add further risk if there was rice in it, because cooked rice is a very high risk food, and you are rouletting it a bit. And the incubation for listeria is up to 70 days!

But I'm sure you'll be fine.

Don't want to be spewing on an empty stomach

It might be higher risk than certain other things for listeria, but that still leaves listeria incredible unlikely. Only 150 cases a year in the UK, mostly from bagged salad, processed meats and prepacked sandwiches. Miniscule chance of listeria from a ready meal.

It'd be another week before I'd worry about it!