When to Salvage Partially Spoiled Food (and When to Throw It Away)
If there’s one thing we can all agree on in these turbulent times, it’s that food prices are so damn high . As long as you’re part of the population that knows how much a gallon of milk costs, you’ve probably spent the last few years trying different strategies to maximize your grocery budget. And one of those strategies is to recalibrate your aversion to food that has gotten a little spoiled.
Sometimes you can cut off moldy parts of foods like jam and cheese and eat the rest without consequences, for example, although you’ll have much less success with moldy bread or tomato sauce. But foods are a different story: they’re much more delicate than processed, shelf-stable foods. When faced with brown lettuce or bruised fruit, can you just cut off the “bad” spots and go about your business?
Can you eat foods after they turn brown?
Many foods change color after a while – we’ve all started the process of making the best sandwich ever conceived, only to find our salad turning brown around the edges. It makes you think twice, but the good news is that browning isn’t all that bad. This is caused by oxygen reacting with enzymes in the plant, exposure to ethylene from other foods, or storage at too low or too high a temperature. Generally speaking, if your foods are not slimy or smell bad, you can cut off the brown sections and eat the rest.
Can you eat spoiled food?
Fruits and vegetables are quite delicate and are easily damaged, especially during transport to the grocery store. The bruise on the product is a soft spot, sometimes with a small amount of folds in the skin, with a mushy brown area underneath. It’s a little disgusting, but you can cut out the bruise and eat the rest .
What to do when the products start to sprout?
It’s happened to the best of us: you store vegetables for future use, and by the time you go looking for them, they start to look like something out of The Last of Us with sprouts all over the place. Can you just cut off the sprouts and eat the rest?
Probably. Sprouted potatoes may indicate higher levels of substances known as glycoalkaloids, which can be dangerous. But you can usually just cut off the sprouts and eat the rest of the potato without any danger , as long as it’s firm and otherwise in good shape. But if your potatoes turn green on the skin or flesh, be careful – this indicates a high level of solanine in the potato, which can be very dangerous, especially for children. You can cut off some greenery, but it’s safest to throw it away.
It is also okay to eat other types of vegetables once they have sprouted. Onions , garlic , and carrots also sprout from time to time and can be eaten as long as the vegetables are firm and their surface is not slimy or too soft. Just chop the sprouts and keep cooking.
Can you eat moldy foods?
Mold is terrible, but it’s tempting to just cut off the moldy parts of fruits and vegetables if the rest looks good. The effectiveness of this depends on the moisture content of the item. “Soft” fruits and vegetables (such as oranges and eggplants) usually have mold below the surface and possibly all over the place, so once you spot mold, it’s too late to save. Fruits and vegetables with a lower moisture content, such as peppers, can be cut out with mold spots if the rest is firm, dry, and otherwise looks healthy.
When not to eat questionable foods
Generally speaking, it’s always safer to throw away food that looks fishy. But if you’re trying to be as frugal as possible, you can often cut off the bad parts. The main thing is not to limit yourself to appearance: obvious signs that you cannot save your products include:
- “Slimy” texture and feel
- Soft and mushy texture
- Bad smell (or God help you, bad taste )
If your product has these clues, just get rid of it. Otherwise, you will be able to save most of it, especially if you are going to cook it rather than eat it raw.