Post by WVsnowflake on Apr 13, 2011 21:48:14 GMT -6
I Have often wondered about my spices in my spice rack and ran accross this article and thought Hmmm how many of us have spices that were actually part of our mothers ? ( well maybe not that old but close LOL ) SO here is a good rule of thumb.
The shelf life of spices varies, and you never really need to worry about them going “bad” like other foods do. For example, a bottle of curry powder that’s been around a questionable amount of time probably won’t make you sick … it will just be less potent. Many folks abide by a “six-month rule” when it comes to discarding most spices. Seems a bit short to me. I certainly can’t afford to replace all of mine twice a year.
The folks at McCormick offer “to toss or not to toss” guidelines that are more generous:
•Ground spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, turmeric): 2 to 3 years
•Herbs (basil, oregano, parsley): 1 to 3 years
•Seasoning blends: 1 to 2 years
•Whole spices (cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon sticks): 4 years
•Seeds: 4 years (except for poppy and sesame seeds, which should be discarded after 2 years)
•Extracts: 4 years (except for vanilla, which will last forever)
Pretty straightforward, eh? Sure, but unless you keep some kind of “purchased on…” checklist inside of your cabinet it’s probably hard to keep track of how long each and every spice has been kicking around.
Some spice companies, like McCormick, do include “best by” dates on the bottles while others don’t. The many Fairway brand spices that I own aren’t so transparent when it comes to their shelf life. In fact, I was just eying an almost-empty container of dried parsley that I’m pretty sure has been living on my spice shelf for four-plus years.
green.yahoo.com/blog/guest_bloggers/110/how-long-should-i-keep-spices.html
The shelf life of spices varies, and you never really need to worry about them going “bad” like other foods do. For example, a bottle of curry powder that’s been around a questionable amount of time probably won’t make you sick … it will just be less potent. Many folks abide by a “six-month rule” when it comes to discarding most spices. Seems a bit short to me. I certainly can’t afford to replace all of mine twice a year.
The folks at McCormick offer “to toss or not to toss” guidelines that are more generous:
•Ground spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, turmeric): 2 to 3 years
•Herbs (basil, oregano, parsley): 1 to 3 years
•Seasoning blends: 1 to 2 years
•Whole spices (cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon sticks): 4 years
•Seeds: 4 years (except for poppy and sesame seeds, which should be discarded after 2 years)
•Extracts: 4 years (except for vanilla, which will last forever)
Pretty straightforward, eh? Sure, but unless you keep some kind of “purchased on…” checklist inside of your cabinet it’s probably hard to keep track of how long each and every spice has been kicking around.
Some spice companies, like McCormick, do include “best by” dates on the bottles while others don’t. The many Fairway brand spices that I own aren’t so transparent when it comes to their shelf life. In fact, I was just eying an almost-empty container of dried parsley that I’m pretty sure has been living on my spice shelf for four-plus years.
green.yahoo.com/blog/guest_bloggers/110/how-long-should-i-keep-spices.html