Spoilage question

Bell Jar spaketh thusly:

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air
tight packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot
about them. I was going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all
the other food, we didn't need them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not
brown, however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long
and will make my family sick. Has it been to long? Should I
just toss them? They smell ok.

Cook 'em up.

The key was the "air tight", if they would've been sitting around
soaking up airborne whatnots for 10 days, they would likely
neither be pink or smell good. Plus, we all know that gum'mint
regulations on food safety are way-y-y-y-y slanted towards the
consumer, the vendor doesn't have a prayer of outting an honest,
realistic date on perishable goods.

--
_________________________________________
If u are gonna say that I said something,
please say what I REALLY said. ($1 Earl)

Bell Jar said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air tight
packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot about them. I was
going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all the other food, we didn't need
them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long? Should I just toss them?
They smell ok.

They're probably just fine. I'd toss em on a hot grill and to be on
the safe side cook until until medium, not rare.

Unfortunately you neglect to say what kind of steak, not even from what
animal (I'm assuming beef), so I can't be of more help.

Sheldon

"Bell Jar" <[email hidden]> wrote in message

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air tight
packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot about them. I was
going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all the other food, we didn't need
them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long? Should I just toss them?
They smell ok.
Thanks,

The sell by date allows for some time to use them. I'd not hesitate to toss
them on the grill. If they were in a Cryovac package, they will last even
longer.

In article <[email hidden]>, "Bell Jar"

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air tight
packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot about them. I was
going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all the other food, we didn't need
them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long? Should I just toss them?
They smell ok.
Thanks,

Cook them and enjoy them.
--
-Barb, <http://www.jamlady.eboard.com> 7/8/05 WeBeJammin'!

On Sat, 09 Jul 2005 20:08:34 GMT, "Bell Jar" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air tight
packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot about them. I was
going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all the other food, we didn't need
them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long? Should I just toss them?
They smell ok.
Thanks,

If they look normal, feel normal and smell normal then it's fine to
cook them. The sell-by date is not the same as the 'use-by' date
because they assume that you'll have it in the fridge for at least a
day or so before you cook it.

--
~Karen aka Kajikit
Crafts, cats, and chocolate - the three essentials of life
http://www.kajikitscorner.com

Thanks everyone, DH grilled them and they were fine 🙂
IMO they should not only have a sell by date, but a USE by date. I know
that if it is frozen that would change, but it would be more simple.

"Karen AKA Kajikit" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 09 Jul 2005 20:08:34 GMT, "Bell Jar" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1" they are air tight
packaging. I put them in my fridge and somehow forgot about them. I was
going to serve them on the 4th, but w/ all the other food, we didn't need
them.
Today I pulled them out and they look fine. They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long? Should I just toss them?
They smell ok.
Thanks,

If they look normal, feel normal and smell normal then it's fine to
cook them. The sell-by date is not the same as the 'use-by' date
because they assume that you'll have it in the fridge for at least a
day or so before you cook it.

--
~Karen aka Kajikit
Crafts, cats, and chocolate - the three essentials of life
http://www.kajikitscorner.com

Bell Jar said:

Thanks everyone, DH grilled them and they were fine 🙂
IMO they should not only have a sell by date, but a USE by date. I know
that if it is frozen that would change, but it would be more simple.

A use-by date would be pretty useless as there is no way to tell how
meat will be handled once it leaves the store... in fact there is no
way to know how each store handles meat either... about all the
consumer can do is keep blind trust, and move to another store when
they get ripped off with spoiled meat and then where does that end. I
still would like to see the idea I came up with, some ten years ago
now, that all foods requiring refrigeration contain a tamper proof
chemical sensor in it's packaging that would indicate when an item has
been exposed to less than ideal temperature and for more than a safe
amount of time... would probably add no more than 2¢ to the price of
each package. With today's technology it would be extremely simple but
you know that the food industry will fight it to the death. So we're
stuck with stupid sell-by dates, the food industry has all the power
and the consumer essentially has none. Anyway, the day is coming soon
when all fresh meats at the retail level will only be sold in the
frozen state... poultry is almost there now... of course this cuts back
on wasted product for the food industry but screw the consumer royally
by relagaing them to what for all intents and purpose is meat
tantamount to petfood.

Sheldon

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Bell Jar said:

Thanks everyone, DH grilled them and they were fine 🙂
IMO they should not only have a sell by date, but a USE by date. I know
that if it is frozen that would change, but it would be more simple.

A use-by date would be pretty useless as there is no way to tell how
meat will be handled once it leaves the store...

ahh .. good point.

in fact there is no
way to know how each store handles meat either... about all the
consumer can do is keep blind trust, and move to another store when
they get ripped off with spoiled meat and then where does that end. I
still would like to see the idea I came up with, some ten years ago
now, that all foods requiring refrigeration contain a tamper proof
chemical sensor in it's packaging that would indicate when an item has
been exposed to less than ideal temperature and for more than a safe
amount of time... would probably add no more than 2¢ to the price of
each package. With today's technology it would be extremely simple but
you know that the food industry will fight it to the death.

That is a very good idea, it would help people like me that are always
unsure of meats.

So we're
stuck with stupid sell-by dates, the food industry has all the power
and the consumer essentially has none. Anyway, the day is coming soon
when all fresh meats at the retail level will only be sold in the
frozen state... poultry is almost there now... of course this cuts back
on wasted product for the food industry but screw the consumer royally
by relagaing them to what for all intents and purpose is meat
tantamount to petfood.

Sheldon

Sheldon wrote: I

Quoted message said:

still would like to see the idea I came up with, some ten years ago
now, that all foods requiring refrigeration contain a tamper proof
chemical sensor in it's packaging that would indicate when an item has
been exposed to less than ideal temperature and for more than a safe
amount of time... would probably add no more than 2¢ to the price of
each package. With today's technology it would be extremely simple but
you know that the food industry will fight it to the death.

They exist - I have seen them. The problem is stores will pull food
out of the coolers and let it sit - and so they would be setting off
the sensors and couldn't sell the product afterward. So it hasn't been
put into use commerically.

-L.

Sheldon wrote: I

Quoted message said:

still would like to see the idea I came up with, some ten years ago
now, that all foods requiring refrigeration contain a tamper proof
chemical sensor in it's packaging that would indicate when an item has
been exposed to less than ideal temperature and for more than a safe
amount of time... would probably add no more than 2¢ to the price of
each package. With today's technology it would be extremely simple but
you know that the food industry will fight it to the death.

The theory is great, the technology is surely there, but . . . . .
Yesterdays warmed steak is today's ground beef in a new package.

On Sat, 09 Jul 2005 21:08:01 GMT, "Edwin Pawlowski" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

"Bell Jar" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I bought Steaks that were dated "Sell by July 1"
They are pink, not brown,
however I'm a little worried that I have waited to long and will make my
family sick. Has it been to long?

The sell by date allows for some time to use them. I'd not hesitate to toss
them on the grill.

There is no standard for 'sell by' dating. Even with 'packed on'
dates, you don't know how long meat has been in transit. My
supermarket puts out chicken with 'sell by' dates of up to a week, and
I wouldn't refrigerate chicken for that long at home. Trust your eyes
and nose!