I started prepping in February 2020. And doing so I bought huge (6 pound) cans of black beans and tomato sauce. Three years later (stored/unopened in my basement), and I just opened up a can of each. Both cans passed the visual, odor and (small) taste test. A lot of sites online seem to be telling me to throw it out. I probably trust all of you more than those sites. Hold on to the rest or play it safe?
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A good rule is to buy things that you use regularly and rotate through the stocks.
^^Best advice
Ex army , in the 80s we ate wwll c rations.
Canned foods with high acidity will eat through the can in several years which leaks and fucks up the rest of your stash. Same with some canned fruits. Keep them separate and rotate.
All cans inspected. Looks good. No damage
If it has a hiss when opened, probably not a good idea. Outside of can should have no rust and should not be bulged. Best by and sell by dates are grossly inaccurate in almost every kind of canned goods. I too have some pretty old stuff that I need to consume and replace sooner than later.
I also have a few dozen pounds each of dry beans and rice, vacuum sealed. Also quite a bit of ramen. Not the greatest nutritionally, but it will fill the belly and nearly lasts forever stored properly.
Don't forget to turn your canned meat upside down once in awhile to let juices and preservatives to cover the top layer.
I’d use them as quickly as possible.
Many in the same position In the UK recently they OK'd eating expired canned food (it's real bad over there). Here, I found: (1) Most shelf-stable foods are safe indefinitely. In fact, canned goods will last for years, as long as the can itself is in good condition (no rust, dents, or swelling). Packaged foods (cereal, pasta, cookies) will be safe past the 'best by' date, although they may eventually become stale or develop an off flavor. (2) Can canned food last 20 years? Most shelf-stable foods are safe indefinitely. In fact, canned goods will last for years, as long as the can itself is in good condition (no rust, dents, or swelling).Jan 3, 2023 (usda dot gov/media/blog/2013/06/27/you-toss-food-wait-check-it-out) (3)Foodnetwork. Bottom Line: Canned food is a nutritious, sustainable and cost-friendly option. When stored properly, canned foods will be good for several years. Personal experience: I make a slurry in oil of fresh onions, garlic, ginger, add soy, salt, sugar, fresh cumin, other spices, fry with fresh tomatoes, sear some meat, and then chuck the old canned chili. What doesn't kill, fattens.
Thanks everyone! Actually ate one of the tomato sauce cans tonight. Made spaghetti and meatballs for the family. It was pretty good! Jarred the leftovers to use in the next few weeks.
Have eaten soup expired in 15' in 20'. But i know that date is "Best by" not "rotten by"
I would eat them.
Canned meats are best to be approached with caution. If the can still draws in air when you open it, it is safe to smell it. If the smell doesn't seem off, it is safe to cook and eat. Most other non-acidic canned foods can last about 7 years from date of canning. Dried foods like beans, pastas, vegetables have a much longer shelf life and can approach 20 years or more in a low humidity, cool environment. Flavor can be saved from tasting stale by storing in vacuum sealed bags with small oxygen absorber sealed inside the package. Freeze dried foods that are sealed with an oxygen absorber have a virtually unlimited shelf life, especially stored in a cool dry place. Since water is so critical for dried foods, it is best to have multiple methods of purifying water. Water can be stored, if it is pure and completely free of bacteria, spores and contaminates in a sterile container and sealed properly. Polyethylene and stainless steel containers are best. You can buy and even make your own water purification systems, lots of online tutorials and materials lists. Purified water that is then distilled is as pure as it gets.
Prepped since the Big O's years. I had a flood in my garage and several #10 cans got rusted. I squeezed 2 of them and felt some give so I opened them up just to see and there were tiny rust holes in the cans. Naturally I threw them out. As long as unopened it should last but be careful how and where you store them. I would not have seen those holes if I wasnt really looking for them.
It is very easy to create a supply of canned meat using mason jars and a pressure-canner see: https://morningchores.com/pressure-canning-meat/
Buy large packs of chicken, a whole pork loin, or large cuts of beef. You'll need about 1 lb of raw meat per pint. Follow the instructions provided by the above URL and be sure to use a pressure-canner. A case of quart jars will give you 24 lbs of meat that stores well in a cool, dry basement. After reading an article about how a guy found meat canned by his grandmother during WWII and his grandfather saying that it still looked fine, I decided to do an experiment and allow several jars of canned beef sit on my shelf for 10 years. The lid remained sealed the whole time. When I opened the jar, the meat seemed fine so I made chili from it, as well as a batch of chili from a jar of beef that was less than a year old. I asked a close friend and fellow prepper whether he could taste the difference. When he said "No" I told him that one batch was made from recently canned beef and the other was made from canned beef that was 10 years old. If you do it right, canned meat will last a long time.