(Just) out of date food.

I've got an onion box from Kleeneze which keeps half an onion fresh for ages. It works for lemons too.

I wrap half onions in cling film and leave them near where I prepare food. I never put onions in the fridge because they make the fridge stink. If I forget about the half onion and it is going bad when I find it, I chuck it out. If it looks fine, I use it. Simple. No problems.

Have kept half apples wrapped in cling film in the fridge for weeks and then eaten them. No ill effects.

Blimey, I've used half-onions which have been languishing at the bottom of the fridge for weeks! Apart from being a bit dried out (although wrapped), they're fine when cooked.

That is an old gypsy thing , which I believe , if only use half an onion I firmly wrap the other half in foil .

I did read that we should never use an onion that has been cut in half and saved to use another day as onion attracts bacteria like nothing else. An onion cut in half and left in a room will protect from flu viruses etc as the virus will go into the onion [don't laugh, it's only something I read...but I do believe it!].

Do the Chinese who do that suffer from more tummy bugs than we who find it icky though? That's the question to ask. Robust info, anyone?

The chinese habit of all sticking your chopsticks into the same bowl brings about the same effect on my face muscles.

Yuk! Reminds me of peanuts and crisps on bar counters - not that I frequent bar counters of course!

Absentgrana , like it . Double dipping is appalling , it never ceases to amaze me the number of people who do

Nonu It was one of my mother's sayings. In this case, I thought it was appropriate to use to respond to Vampirequeen.

JessM Children should be taught "no double dipping" from an early age and then, perhaps, they won't do it as adults.

I have a three-day rule with cooked food, or packeted ham etc. Once cooked, or opened, it'll be OK stored in the fridge but after the third day I throw it. On the other hand, I'll use cottage cheese well after the three day period if there's any left...
And cooked rice should only be kept in the fridge for 24 hours.

Shop hummus and other dips a bit vulnerable due to the way they are made. They may start with cooked ingredients but they are not sterile and then they get liquidised - lots of damp surface areas all mixed up.
I've noticed lately that they start to get a few bubbles a few days after purchase - time to go in the bin. Once opened and dipped into into then also time to chuck I think.
Your home made will be fine I am sure.
One of the few things I am queasy about is people biting something and then sticking it into a dip.

Oh Jess - What's special about Hummus going off? I've never heard of that before. Relevant, as I made some today for guests, and will be eating it on Sat. night. Trust that'll be ok? What's it's shelf life. Made loads and stuck the rest in the freezer.

I could tell the Naan bread was gone past it when i got it out of its plastic pouch and I could see an attractive lemony coloured mould, quite a big one, growing at one end. Only 3 weeks past its date ! Resorted to brown pitta bread in fridge. A few whitish mould colonies at one end. Cut em off. Just bread mould

USB? I've got 'USB sticks' on my mind at present as I'm preparing 3 talks for 3 different audiences during September. I meant of course UBD

Absentgrana , I liked your post "True oh Queen " who was it directed to ?

I would imagine that the USB is still within eatable limits after a day or two, otherwise manufacturers would be even more concerned about prosecutions ie there has to be a little give and take so manufacturers use a date that the food is absolutely safe [well, as much as it can be] to eat whereas in reality it's fine for a few extra days.

I'm a standing joke in our house about having tins and dried foods beyond best by dates. If it tastes OK then it gets used. If it doesn't then it's binned!

There is the valid point that people with damaged immune systems should be hyper cautious. (e.g. on chemo)

And that immune systems do deteriorate in some ways with age So we might not always get away with playing fast and loose with sell by dates.

Although in other ways they improve as they encounter yet more bugs and develop yet more specific immunities.
Anyway I am on "eat up ods and sods" whatever is left in the fridge mission this evening. A bit like Ainsley - what can i make with some past their best eggs, some nice potatoes , onions, a green pepper.... ah-ha - spanish omelette is the answer. ta-dahhhh

My DD is terrible when it comes to SBD if its half an hour past date its binned...so wasteful...

I used to work in a confectioners and the waste at the end of the day was shameful... we were strictly told that it was all to be binned, even though there was quite a few homeless people near by that could of benefited from it, It used to make me feel so sad

But Jane, you really didn't need the use by date to tell you it was 'off'. I've had Yeo yoghurt that was within it's use by date but was starting to ferment, so I chucked it. What's happened to common sense?

My DS was staying recently and requested marmite on toast. On examination the marmite jar was inscribed 'best before June 2009'. Although it smelled normal for marmite and there were no visible signs of fungal growth, he refused to eat it and to my shame I capitulated and threw the offending jar away. I posted on Facebook about the incident and was roundly told off by several friends who were of the opinion that the flavour would become more exquisite as time passed.
Generally I ignore use by dates, except for fresh meat and fish, but after my DS and family had gone back to the States, I discovered some tubes of Yeo yoghurt in the fridge that DDiL had bought. By this time they were 2 weeks past the use by date, but I confidently presented one to Mr A for pudding. The tubes contained a horrible mass of separated curds and whey, with a sort of sparkling alcoholic flavour
Somehow the combination of sparkling and alcohol was not nearly so appealing as when it comes out of a large green bottle

I'm terrible about sell by dates - under cautious rather then over. I don't mean with fresh food really - I mean if it's yesterday's date it seems fine to me, except with raw chicken of course. However, my daughter who loves to tidy up my larder also has a chuck out of things like sauces and pickles. We did quite a big chuck out last weekend and I was quite ashamed about how much stuff there was .

I did a lot of reading about food safety when I bought a vacuum packer - it seems that one of the greatest hazards which can neither be seen or smelt is botulism and it can affect vacuum packed food.
I pack stuff and then freeze it if I have not used it in a couple of days. If anyone here has good knowledge about vacuum packing etc I would be glad the learn more.
It is some meat, fish and dairy produce ( not hard cheeses of course) that I am most careful about - fruit and veg I go by appearance as much as anything. DH will eat all sorts despite the dates and I have to admit he is still here but my stepson is a member of the fridge police and goes through things as soon as he comes through the door.

I was brought up before sell/use by dates by a mother who threw away nothing. Wobbly carrots - give them a good scrub. Mildewed cheese - scrap it off. Stale bread - toast it. If it was too far gone for us it got feed to the dog or hens. Now though in her 80's she reads every label and good food is jettisoned the day after the use by. Even pickles. She gets most upset by the casseroles etc I make for her - no dates!

I eat food that has reached or passed the use by date but I never give it to GC. Nose is not always a good indication as E coli and salmonella do not always give off an odour. Lettuce and other vegetables can cause food poisoning if they have not been thoroughly cleaned, after all they are grown in soil. I think sometimes it is worth the risk, far to much wastage of food nowadays.