We blow a lot of money on wasted food, and a lot of it has to do with bogus “best by” days. So someone talked to an expert. Here are a few foods you can still eat a week or more after the “best by” date has passed . . .
1. Milk. If it passes the sniff test, it’s probably okay. Milk is usually fine to drink up to a week after the date on the carton.
2. Eggs. You can almost ignore the date, because they’re good weeks longer than that. If you’re worried, try the float test. If an egg floats in water, throw it away.
3. Pasta. It’s still perfectly safe to eat up to two years after the date.
4. Cheese. Hard cheeses like cheddar last a long time. Even if there’s mold, you can cut it off. Soft cheeses like brie are different. So only those dates matter.
5. Dry ingredients, like flour, sugar, salt, pepper, and baking soda. They last a really long time as long as they don’t get wet.
6. Bagged salad. As long as it still looks okay, it’s probably fine.
7. Canned food. A lot of canned stuff can last up to two years past its expiration date, especially soups and vegetables.
