How Many Days Past The Use By Date Can You Cook Chicken

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When it comes to food safety, chicken often gets a bad rap. Whether y'all agree with that argument or not, poultry comes nether burn from salmonella scares and seems to draw more than scrutiny than other meats – and all for good reason. Expiration dates don't necessarily spell certain doom for chicken, nonetheless; if simply two days have passed, your senses likely serve as the most reliable safety exam.

All About Expiration

While y'all should never downplay the risks of eating spoiled meat, the reputation of expiration dates paints a scarier picture than the truth. In reality, there's no national system for dating nutrient in the U.S. Additionally, chicken doesn't instantly plow bad the day of the sell-by date. A sell-past engagement is a recommendation for when the retailer should remove the product from its shelves, and isn't necessarily an indication of how long the product will be safe for. Equally a general dominion of thumb, poultry typically lasts a 24-hour interval or 2 by the sell-past date, but should be eaten on or before its use-by date for optimal safety.

Trust Your Senses

The relative looseness of expiration dates bated, always err on the side of circumspection when it comes to your prophylactic and the safe of your family. If you're a solar day or 2 past the date or otherwise unsure about the freshness of your chicken, turn to your senses. Although slight changes in colour are normal – specially concealment or fading – throw away craven that smells foul, rancid, sulfurous or otherwise "off," as this is an indication that information technology has spoiled. Likewise, if your craven feels slimy, gluey or tacky to the touch, throw information technology out. If annihilation doesn't seem right, information technology's best to throw the chicken in the trash. Chicken tin can smell, look and taste okay but withal brand you sick, so it's of import to ever store it correctly.

Pack Your Poultry

To ensure maximum safety and freshness, store your chicken in individual plastic freezer-safe zip-top bags, and minimize the air in the chicken'south wrapping. Store it in the fridge at 35 to twoscore F or in the freezer at 0 F. Store whole fresh chicken or fresh chicken pieces in the refrigerator for but ane or two days. Chicken pieces will last effectually nine months in the freezer, while a whole craven will retain its quality for up to a yr in the freezer.

More than to Consider

Regardless of the expiration date, some practices profoundly increase the risk of unsafe craven. Never eat chicken that has been left out of the refrigerator for more than two hours, or one hour in temperatures higher up xc F considering room temperatures let bacteria to multiply quickly. Once you lot've cooked your chicken, utilise a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken's internal temperature is at least 165 F.