When Should You Throw Out Food?

To me there is nothing worse than opening up a loaf of bread that you have only had for one day, and find mold.  Ugh.  Do you feel that you need to throw the whole loaf out?  Is it ok to remove the moldy part and eat what is left?  For some things, it’s ok to eat, but others, not so much, because some molds are actually toxic to the body.  Some may cause some serious health issues, so be careful what kind of molds you are dealing with.

Even blue cheese, which is primarily mold, can be iffy.  Cut around it, ok?  It isn’t a controlled mold and could be dangerous.

Hard foods are generally safe if you shave away the bad areas.  We’ve all used a paring knife to slice away bad spots on carrots, pears, and potatoes.  That is ok because it is harder for the mold to penetrate these foods.

With softer foods, it gets a little trickier.  You can never assume that you have completely gotten rid of the mold after  you’ve cut it away.  Chances are, the mold is still there.  Grapes are a good example.  If you see mold on a grape, lose the whole bunch.

Here are some foods that are ok to eat even though they show some mold.

Mold on hard fruit/veggies: Cut about ½ inch around the mold to get rid of it.

Hard cheese: cut about ½-1 inch around mold, rewrap cheese with new covering

Hard salami/dry cured ham: OK to use, mold adds flavor to the salami, can scrub the mold off the coating of the ham.

Gorgonzola/Bleu cheese: Cut out the moldy spot.

If you do cut away the moldy part, consume what you want, but then just get rid of what is left.  If you’ve already cut mold off of it, chances are more is to come.  Just let it go.

Here are some things to just get rid of if you find mold.  These are not ok to eat, and why would you?  Eeeeee!

• Brie, Camembert
• Hot dogs
• Bacon
• Casseroles
• Leftovers
• Pasta
• Jams/jellies
• Yogurt/sour cream
• Lunch meat
• Cooked meats
• Soft fruits/ veggies/ even mold on orange rinds
• Bread/baked goods
• Sliced, shredded, cubed cheese
• Nuts/nut butters

Don’t just think you can detect mold by looking at the item, either.  Chances are, if that first piece of bologna has mold, the rest of the pieces are likely tainted even if they don’t have fuzz on them.  Just be safe and get rid of them.

In my house we are definitely guilty of letting the fridge get out of hand, we really need to clean it out more often, but here are some tips for you to be able to minimize mold growth on your foods.

• Using leftovers within 3 to 4 days.
• Cleaning your refrigerator every few months with 1 tablespoon baking soda dissolved in a quart of water.
• Scrubbing visible mold using 3 teaspoons of bleach in a quart of water.

Bottom line here, if in doubt, throw it out.  It’s just not worth getting sick over.