A lot of foods can be misleading with the expiration date, and it can be seen as a “recommended date.” For example, usually with bread it is good for a few extra days and you just need to look out for mold or if it starts to harden.
I’m here to help you find when it’s a bad idea to drink the orange juice you forgot about in the back of your fridge. Knowing where to find the expiration date might save you from an unfortunate case of food poisoning or upset stomach.
#SpoonTip: When finding expiration dates try finding the nutrition label first. Odds are that the “Best By” date will be near.
Milk
Starting off easy, avoid going sour when your milk does by spotting the expiration date reliably by the handle of the jug.
Olive Oil
Bet you didn’t see this one coming. Does olive oil even really expire? After about two years, yes. Check the back of the bottle near the nutrition information for your window of opportunity to infuse that liquid gold.
Spices and Herbs
Despite their essence of immortality, spices and herbs do expire. The expiration date on most bottles will be on the cap or near the barcode of the container.
Yogurt
Dairy going bad is not a force to be reckoned with. It will sneak up on you and it will hurt you. Look for yogurt expirations very carefully. It’s probably small and printed on the top of the container.
Bread
If you freeze your bread when bought in bulk, you can go ahead and disregard the expiration date. However, if you keep it on your countertop, just toss it when you feel that it’s gone bad. The expiration date varies in location due to the logo or general design of the bag.
Hummus
I tend to eat an entire tub of hummus with veggies or pita chips in one sitting but if that’s not your thing and you do have to worry about it expiring, check on the top of the container.
Frozen Fruit
Sour mangos are bad, a sour mango smoothie is worse. Keep your smoothies sweet and happy by looking for the expiration date on the back of the bag.
Butter
Butter doesn’t deserve the neglect required to reach its expiration date. Do butter justice by using it on the daily and checking for that Best By date by the nutrition facts.
Quinoa
In the swap of grain to better, healthier grain, look for quinoa’s usage deadline towards the corner of the packaging near the what? Say it with me, y’all, the nutrition information.
Canned Foods
Apocalypse ready? Just hope it doesn’t happen after the Best By date which can be found on the top or bottom of the can.
Juices and Other Cartoned Liquids
100% fruit juice has a 100% chance of tasting extra sour after the expiration date which can be found on the top tab of the carton.
Frozen Veggies
Frozen vegetables are an excellent way to cut time when meal prepping and we can’t prep healthy meals if our veggies have gone bad. Before cracking open that Tupperware, ensure your veggies will be convincingly fresh by looking for the expiration date on the back of the bag.
Peanut Butter
Peanut butter lasts so long due to some of its ingredients that these countries have banned entirely. The expiration date can be found on the cap of the container.
Crackers
If you can’t find the expiration date on the ends of the box, try one. If it’s so stale that you’re offended, toss it.
Rice
Rice is essentially a dry seed. It takes a while for it to go bad. See how long your seeds will last by the nutrition facts.
Pasta
On the theme of dehydrated carbohydrates, it takes several years to become subpar. Find the expiration date on the flaps to open the box or by the nutrition information.
I now send you off with this newfound knowledge in finding the expiration dates for different foods. Look at the nutrition labels, and try to avoid expired foods because they don’t look too great on those #foodstagrams.
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