I have some pork in the fridge that went out of date yesterday. Should I cook it now/freeze it/ throw it?

[avenanap]

Yes. But, how does the food know what day it is? It's a conspiracy to make us spend more money and pollute the planet with 'out of date' things.

i would never leave meat out of fridge, except to cool enough to go in or to warm enough to cook. unless it is v cold weather no heating.

aven are you saying you bought chicken and then threw it away without eating it because of the date? or do you mean it smelt a bit funny? sometimes it can be like that from too long in plastic. if meat is really off i can guarantee you will know about it. (not that it means doesn't carry bacteria but that is another matter).

If something is in date when you open it but smells dodgy, you should take it back for a refund, not chuck it!

lol at aven

It was in the fridge but it smelt quite nasty. I've never met a smelly chicken before so I threw it. I didn't think I could take it back. I was pissed off though because I had to give ds beans on toast for his tea.

I've had supermarket meat that was IN date, but smelled nasty so I chucked it. On the other hand, I frequently eat meat that is a day past its use by, but quite clearly still fine.

I trust my senses, not the supermarket's one-size-fits-all dating machine. Haven't been ill yet. I know there's no guarantees. But I'll take my chances.

I've got a friend who's a butcher and he would never chuck meat just cos it was a few days out of date. As everyone has said here, if it smells bad (and not just a bit funky because of the plastic) but REALLY bad, then chuck it. And just always cook food properly.

I remember watching a programme where this woman was going through her fridge saying "these yogurts, their use by date is day after tomorrow so I'll bin these and buy new ones today" An obscene amount of waste.

Quick question of my own though ... roasted chicken yesterday. Put leftovers in microwave to cool down before putting in fridge (keeps it away from cats). Totally forgot till this morning. Would you chuck it or do you reckon it'd be ok?

Regarding Wishingchair's chicken - it depends how warm your kitchen is. Ours is very warm (Rayburn range, on all the time), so I don't eat things that have been out all night, despite being relaxed about use by dates.

But if the kitchen is reasonably cool, I'd probably use it for a stir fry or pie (so it gets nice and hot again) and eat it today. But not eat it cold and not leave it till tomorrow.

Thanks Smithagain ... no rayburn or similar and no heating on overnight, so it will've been a reasonably chilly room temperature.

Agree ... hate to waste it but will make sure I heat it up really well.