Mumsnet users share tips and recipes for using up food with Sainsbury's

[EllieMumsnet]

This activity is closed

‘Best before’, ‘use by’, ‘display until’…many of us are confused about what the dates on food labels really mean, and whether it’s safe to eat food that has passed the deadline. Sainsbury’s is on a mission to get to the bottom of this confusion and bust the myth that you can’t use food past its ‘best before’ date, therefore they would love you to share your top tips and recipes for using up food which has passed its ‘best before’ deadline.

Here’s what Sainsbury’s has to say: “We know that there is a lot of confusion between ’best before’ and ’use by’ dates, which is why are working with Mumsnet to dispel the myths about food date labels and to stop food from being thrown away that is still good to eat. After we found out through a previous Mumsnet thread that many of you throw away food that is past its ‘best before’ date, we created the below video to encourage people to rethink and make sure their food doesn’t end up in the bin”

Do you use the smell test on food that’s passed it’s ‘best before’ date and if it smells fine do you think it’s then it’s ok to be eaten? Have you got any easy recipes that are your go-to’s for using up food? Or maybe there are certain foods which you know will be fine past their ‘best before’?

Take a look at the video and share with us your top tips and recipes for using food which has gone past its ‘best before’ dates to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 Sainsbury’s voucher.

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

When bananas start browning and no one wants to eat them anymore, I chop them up and put them in a fruit smoothie

I freeze fruit that has gone a bit soft and then use it for smoothies or porridge.
Any meats that really can't be used i freeze for dog food.

Deffo agree with the video, I always toast bread/rolls after best before date they are absolutely fine toasted. I also do a use everything up tea, so any bits that are starting to turn I use them up with a random dinner of bits and bobs!

An easy one for bread - the slater and harder it is the better - grate and turn into breadcrumbs , portion up into freezer bags and freeze .

Bananas - peel and chop into chunks , stick in the freezer and turn into smoothies.

for root veg , I find the best before dates way off ! they last for ages . The other day I turned carrots , parsnips and sweet potato into a spicy veg soup in the slow cooker ...then you guessed it - froze it in portions !
For meat, eggs and dairy I would be more cautious. However I often eat yoghurts a couple of days after their BB dates

I hate wasting food, so if the product looks and smells fine, I will definately eat/serve it to my family. No problems so far. After having a roast meal, I then cut up all the remaining meat and vegetables the next day and make a pasta and put that in.

Since I got a decent sized freezer, I've become a big fan of the reduced section at Sainsburys - I get piles of reduced meat and freeze them immediately. I find meat that's approaching its best before date tastes best when done in the slow cooker, especially beef.

Soups/smoothies are great ways of using up fruit and veg that has gone a bit soft/past it's best. I tend to trust my instincts rather than relying too much on best before /use by dates.

I use heat before dates as a guide but often go past them, as long as the food looks and smells okay.
I try to cook and freeze any vegetables that are on their way off to prevent them from being wasted.
And things like crisps, chocolate, that has gone past its date I just bump to the top of the pile.

I regularly eat food past its BBD, my dh just doesn't tell me, so I don't know. He has been doing it for 10 years to no ill effects. With eggs he always does the floaty test before using them, even if they are in date.

Yes I always go by the smell and appearance of food to tell if it's ok to eat rather than sticking to the best before date. I always find bubble and squeak a good go to recipe to use up food before it goes over. You can virtually add any vegetable to potato and make a tasty, quick tea. I also use things up by making soup.

The only times that I really pay attention to use by dates are on fish (I don't eat meat) and yeast. The yeast thing is just because I have found that using yeast past it's use by date means that the bread doesn't rise and I've wasted a load of ingredients on an inedible loaf!

Apart from that it's common sense all the way. I use best before as a guide, e.g. when shopping I will choose items with the latest best before dates and after Christmas when I was trying to use up leftovers I used the short dated stuff first.

I use my freezers a lot! I chuck all the ends of bread in there and either use it as breadcrumbs, or when I have enough make bread pudding. I actually just did this last night - made a big bread pudding and froze it uncooked in individual foil trays so that I can just take it out, defrost and sling in the oven for a zero effort (at the time...) pudding.

If I have carrots, onion or celery going limp I'll chop a load up and freeze in portions as a base for soups or stews.

One of our favourite meals is Hommity Pie. Fry up any old veg lurking in the fridge, boil then mash some potatoes, mix both with some veg stock and grated cheese. Bake in the oven and then enjoy a tasty, healthy, filling and comforting dish.

Smell it & look at it. If it smells ok and looks ok, it probably is. I rarely bother with sell by, use by etc.

We 'revive' old bread by sprinkling it with water and popping it in the oven for 5 minutes. You can cut baguettes in half, top with overripe tomatoes, grated cheese or crumbled feta that's a bit dry and some roasted overripe peppers with a drizzle of olive oil. Delicious!

Don’t believe in best before dates, I find loads of food lasts way longer than the date shown. Last leg veg gets put in sauces, meat is always frozen and meal plans go around this, eggs and milk you KNOW if it’s bad, same with chicken etc. I trust myself to be able to smell and see when something isn’t ok!

old veg - always soup. Old bananas - banana loaf or banana muffins. I don't usually have any left over food though! If I make too much I freeze it or it gets eaten for lunch the next day and I meal plan so I only buy what I need each week fresh. I use a lot of frozen veg too.

Bags of salad leaves go soggy and sour really quickly if you leave them in the plastic bag. Line a large tupperware with kitchen towel, shake the leaves in,cover with more kitchen towel and put the lid on before storing in the fridge. Will last for days this way.

I usually just smell the food and assess the way it looks. Over ripe bananas for banana bread-, stale bread goes in bread and butter pudding. Then of course, there is always bubble and squeak, using up leftover mash and cabbage.

I personally don’t go just by the sell by date. I look, smell and taste the product!
Vegetables and fruit ate definitely ok in my opinion. If they are not so fresh.. i grate them and use them in my cooking .. eg: add it in an ommolett or rice. Sometimes I chop and freeze vegetables and save them for when making soup or casserole dish.

Most our food is yellow label at the moment so we're not too fussy about best before dates.
Bread becomes french toast
yogurt goes into breakfast parfaits or is used on porridge
veg is used for soups/stews etc, with cheese sauces, fritters/hash
Fruit is made into cobblers/pies and crumbles
Eggs make frittatas and cheese is used to make sauces
meat is cooked on the day and then used on various things or frozen until it's needed
old cakes become the base for trifles or cake pops
a lot of ends of fruit/ veg and herbs go to the guinea pigs
I'll cut off stale bits from bread and cheese.

Finally i use pinterest a lot for ideas

I don’t think I even look at dates in most things veg, bread, milk, eggs etc. If it looks ok and smells ok then clearly it IS ok.

I usually check meat but have used things a couple of days late with no ill effects.

If something is close to its bbd, it gets cooked or frozen to avoid waste. Cooked meat etc always lasts longer.

almost everytihgin I come across is fine and even most past use by nowadays.
bread.veg,salad.we have had veg last weeks over the time it says its ridiculous.
more cautious of meats.
for bready you can make crusts by mixing it with some oil or butter and rub in some herbs and topping meat or fish.
bread sauce.
bready pudding
tomatos for cooking
my dad had soup the other day years passed.and often does.hes fine.
veggies for stews.
fruits going soft or past tasting best as fresh for crumbles or pies or desserts.
biscuits for cheesecake or parfait bases.
common snese is key.we are not stupid.smell and sight will tell us many a time whether something is past it.

I dont even really check the dates, I go by sight and smell. If It is getting close to its sell by date I will freeze it if possible.

I hate wasting food!

I use what god gave me, smell and sight. For meat (if it is a day, 2 at max) give it a sniff and your instincts will tell you whether its fit for the recycling tub. Then I would LABEL, then freeze, and plan a day to defrost and use (I will write on my calendar too to keep myself organised). For vegetables, normally a robust peeling will remove any blackness on carrots, and protrusions on potatoes, they can then me made into a lovely soup or basis of stew. For fruit, it is either a smoothie, (to stir into my morning oats or as a drink), or diced and added to a cake they will make a moist and healthy cake (particularly as you don't need to add as much sugar, just look on the good old interweb for a recipe.

I will use food which has passed its best before date to whip up a soup for dinner or maybe include the leftovers in a Salad or in wraps.