How to Store Food Safely part 1

Okay now as you start purchasing the food that you are going to keep for years how do you store it.  For the #2.5 cans for the most part can just be placed into your food storage as they are. You do need to date them with a permanent marker with at least the year on them. We like to put the year and month that we purchase them. But you need to remember the cans went through being packaged and shipped to the warehouse, then probably shipped again to the store. How long did that take before you purchased the can? There are a few products that are canned that do not last very long one being green beans, and the other is anything with tomato sauce in it. Tomatoes are very acidy and will destroy the can if left in too long. Once you mark the date on the can, make sure that you rotate them so that you use the oldest first.

Mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup, barbeque or cocktail sauce and salad dressings don’t last very long. Look at the expiration date, this is what by law the manufactures have to say the earliest possible spoilage. The other things that make a difference is the  1)temperature at which it is stored, 2)light from outside or fluorescent lighting and 3)humidity. If the color starts changing, if the odor is different, if the ingredients start separating, these are all things to watch for. It would be best to put those products into active use and maybe consider reducing the stock level of that particular item because you are not using it fast enough. This is where you will need to look for powdered replacements for the long run.  All of these have fats in them that will turn rancid and there is nothing worse than to have lots stored up and you open one up to find it bad and the rest are the same way.  There is some money down the drain. [There IS a use for spoiled food that we can talk about later] Mayonnaise and salad dressings are made with powdered eggs and or powdered milk and ketchup, barbeque or cocktail sauce are made with powdered tomato sauce. You might want to get some powdered eggs, milk and tomato sauce to try some before you have to make it or have none.

On to A-1, Soy Sauce, Worchester Sauce and such unopened according to manufacturer has an expiration date of 2-3 years, if stored in cool, dry, dark place. However, it can change color or have an odor to it. So use your own best judgment. These can add flavor to dishes.  When you cook the same things over and over spices began to become very important in changing the taste of food and making it different, which is good.

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