I seldom use breadcrumbs except made from homemade or bought and staled bread. I have a crabcakes recipe that calls for panko crumbs (or are they rice?), which I have around, but in an opened bag that has been resealed untouched long enough for its “Best By” date to be in 2018.
I tasted them, and they seem okay. But I wonder: do you think bread crumbs go “bad”?
Makes me wonder too if there are other “permanent” pantry staples of note…
They def go stale but use your nose as your guide. Do they smell moldy, yeasty or off?
After a year at most I would toss. 6 months is my usual hold time.
Thanks: no smell or mold. I only thought that after the initial flakey-crispy texture, which was abundant, they just might have been a bit chewier after a couple seconds–but the, I rarely eat panko straight up.
I almost always keep panko crumbs around, although I and not use them much (usually for crab cakes!). In my home I worry more about a “rancid” smell, but since I dont believe they have much if any oil, they are usually fine for my needs.
Sometimes I remember to put them in the freezer.
I’ve also wondered whether dried Thai/Viet-style rice noodles ever go “bad.”
Rice, itself, too.
Hi @BadaBing! This year since I’m limiting trips to the store, I had to rethink my usual benign neglect approach to stocking pantry staples.
Commercially prepared breadcrumbs and panko: I always taste and smell these for off-notes first and check the Best By date second. I think the date offers me only a vague indication of whether the product is fit for use. Their shelf life varies a lot depending on the environment. Panko lasts best for me—could be a year or more if tightly sealed.
Rice: Aroma is my guide. If the grains smell the least bit rancid or funky, it’s game over no matter what the Best By/Sell By date says. And is it just me, or do varieties of rice for risotto like Arborio seem to degrade the fastest? Longer-grain rices seem to store well for me pretty much indefinitely either in a tightly sealed container or vacuum packed.
Rice noodles: These seem to keep almost indefinitely for me. If I store them too long, they appear to become brittle in the package.
Just organizing some cupboards this morning and had to throw out a lot of Chinese and Indian condiments and such. I need to be careful of always wanting to have ‘everything’ on hand for all imagined menu needs.
I share this “wanting to have everything” thing–Mexican, Indian, Thai, Chinese, Korean, Italian, etc.–in addition to all the usual Americana. It’s occurred to me that I might do well to target one cuisine quarterly or the like. Because when I have 5 different types of soy sauce or from 3 or 4 countries, or countless vinegars, somethings are just sitting around…
Good idea!
I’ve definitely used panko well past its best by date, and I’m alive to write about it. 
I think you’ve fine. Some Italian bread crumbs come with herbs, but Japanese panko I but has nothing and is itself rather blabs. I suppose it could smell off, but I’ve never found that with with my old panko.
Err, that was supposed to be “bland”…stupid autocorrect on that phone. And not to make it weird that I’m replying to my own post, I just took out a small bag of plain rice I bought at the local grocer and noticed a best by date. I’ve never noticed this before from the bags from the Asian grocer, but I suppose I go through those quick enough. This was supposed to be “best by April” which isn’t too bad, but I just made some last week when I had rice pilaf and didn’t notice any taste or texture difference.
