“Eat Your Old Food” challenges and triumphs

[travelmad478]

A recent (controversial) post about sell-by dates inspires me to start this thread about utilizing the random elderly food items we find in our pantries. Six months ago, Mr. travelmad478 and I had to box up and remove every item of food in our house because the place was getting tented and fumigated for termites. (Living in New Orleans is great for many reasons; this is one of the less-great parts.) In the process of looking at every single thing in the pantry and fridge, I came across quite a few things that were long past their lives as tasty food; those got tossed immediately. There were also some that were on the cusp of being not so tasty anymore. At that moment, I made it a policy to set a monthly reminder on my calendar to seek out the oldest item in the pantry or freezer and cook/eat it. We have been happily challenged, and occasionally triumphant, in finding uses for (for instance) a nine-year-old partially used jar of Iraqi date syrup that made its way here from Philadelphia with Mr. travelmad478; a box of freekeh that I bought about four years ago and never really got in the habit of using; a jar of Tabasco-branded chili starter that someone gave me as a housewarming gift seven years ago, which got cooked along with a frozen container of “porky onions” that were left over from a roasted pork shoulder but seemed too useful to throw away; two giant cans of mango puree that Mr. travelmad478 took a fancy to in the Indian grocery store back in 2019; and so on.

Does anyone else do this and want to share their challenges and triumphs?

[Desert-Dan (Dan)]

I stole this idea from my mother, she puts a date on EVERYTHING!! As soon as it comes in the house, it gets dated - cans, dry goods, everything. I rotate the stock in my pantry, so nothing gets too old.

I, recently, defrosted my big chest freezer and started an inventory list as to what is in it and approximately where its located. I got this idea from @LindaWhit

When I meal plan, I open up both .doc files and try to use up the oldest stock, first. If I find something on clearance (at the grocery store), I’ll adjust the meal plan to use that item up, immediately.

I can’t remember the last time I threw anything away. Scraps and peels go out to the rabbits and birds. I have a large turkey buzzard that takes any bones, I put out.

For the record, my “Scone Failure” was gone in minutes. I don’t know which birds and or rabbits enjoyed it, but its gone. I broke it into very small pieces and put it out. I do know, the baby quails just hatched, its possible the Momma bird led her babies to it.

[ninrn (Ni)]

Here’s my little trick with old dried beans and whole grains that I find in canisters and bags at the backs of my pantry shelves: I rinse and soak them. If they start to sprout, I know there’s still some nutritive value there and that the fats haven’t become rancid so they’ll taste good. The tiny but of sprouting makes them more digestible too.