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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To cook 1kg steak mince 4 days past best before date?

48 replies

Diedre44 · 08/12/2022 17:27

Smells fine, no brown bits still very pink. Been on bottom shelf of fridge (coldest spot) fridge temp 2degrees?
Was going to do cottage pie...
Will I give us food poisoning?

OP posts:
Cigarettesaftersex1 · 08/12/2022 17:29

If it smells fine I'd go for it

MotherOfCatBoy · 08/12/2022 17:29

If has no strong smell it’s probably fine. Cook it thoroughly. Best before dates are just that - best - they mean that the measured nutritional content of the food on the label is still accurate. It’s not the same as Use by, which is about food going off.

ThisWormHasTurned · 08/12/2022 17:30

I did last week. It was fine. I wasn’t ill! You can smell if mince is off.

Zosime · 08/12/2022 17:30

It will be fine. 'Best before' isn't the same as 'use by' - and even 'use by' dates will allow some leeway.

Shutthegatepeter · 08/12/2022 17:31

Personally I wouldn’t risk it. If it was 2 days past I would, if it was a cut of beef rather than minced I probably would, but mince 4 days over date I wouldn’t risk it. I do have a queasy stomach though and just thinking something was off can make me vomit.

Onnabugeisha · 08/12/2022 17:34

Nope. Not a chance. You cannot rely on sense of smell as the bacteria levels to make you seriously ill are well below the level at which you can smell the gasses they produce.

Nancienoo · 08/12/2022 17:35

I’ve done it I’m still here to tell the tale

ZenNudist · 08/12/2022 17:36

I did this earlier this week. It was 2 days over. Currently eating up the resulting lasagna and no one has died.

StrawberryWater · 08/12/2022 17:37

After 4 days? No way. 🤮

2 maybe, but not 4.

CockingASnook · 08/12/2022 17:38

Will be fine. Just cook thoroughly.

CryCeratops · 08/12/2022 17:39

4 days? I wouldn’t risk it personally.

Roselilly36 · 08/12/2022 17:41

Not with mince, bin it OP.

Honper · 08/12/2022 17:42

No, not mince and not four days over. How much did it cost you? £4? If someone said that they could stop you from having food poisoning for four quid you'd pay it wouldn't you?

Witsendwilly · 08/12/2022 17:43

If it smells and looks ok then absolutely I would cook it.

I have binned mince well inside its sell by date before because it smelled bad. Your eyes and nose are what tell you if food is OK, not a date stamped on a packet

Pidgeonslipshit · 08/12/2022 17:44

Absolutely not …hate to think what is in mince even when it is indate TBH !!

Southwig22 · 08/12/2022 17:48

MotherOfCatBoy · 08/12/2022 17:29

If has no strong smell it’s probably fine. Cook it thoroughly. Best before dates are just that - best - they mean that the measured nutritional content of the food on the label is still accurate. It’s not the same as Use by, which is about food going off.

Although this is true about best before dates they do not apply to fresh or perishable foods. The OP will have made a mistake and it will actually be a 'use by' date, which means exactly that.

sneezums · 08/12/2022 17:48

Beef is fine past the sell by date but def not chicken - as long as it smells okay. It's hung in cold storage for quite a while anyway so a few extra days won't matter.

buckeejit · 08/12/2022 17:49

I doubt if mince has best before - it will be use by which is different. 4 days is a day or 2 too far I reckon

Rockersversuswalter · 08/12/2022 17:50

It's fine.

Original poster
Diedre44 · 08/12/2022 17:53

I'm chancing it...
I've browned it off and is currently in the pressure cooker on high for 10 mins. Theres definitely no off smell, we'll see.

OP posts:
AnElegantChaos · 08/12/2022 17:54

Don't take the chance - to be honest if it's still pink and doesn't smell it probably will be totally fine but you are still risking food poisoning. And if you or your family do need to go to A&E (which I did with food poisoning from meat) the chances of you being seen just now are minimal, not to mention putting more strain on the service. It will be a really unpleasant experience anyway, A&E or not! My vote goes for the bin.

ConfessionsOfAMumDramaQueen · 08/12/2022 17:54

If it's beef and smells and looks ok I'd definitely cook it! Make sure its very well done though. Its a 'best before' not a 'use by'. Doesn't mean it's suddenly at the stroke of midnight going to kill you.

I've eaten yoghurt and eggs 2 weeks after best before without getting ill. I just check the yoghurt isn't lumpy and the eggs don't float first (don't leave yolk runny though).

AnElegantChaos · 08/12/2022 17:55

Ah I can see my post was a minute too late 😄

SinnerBoy · 08/12/2022 17:55

I've used out of date mince before, I do the sniff test. I haven't died from it yet and I've done it when it's started to turn brown.

Onnabugeisha · 08/12/2022 17:55

Beef mince doesn’t have a best before date in the U.K., it always has a use by date.