It's handy to have a well-stocked pantry, but when you're buying ahead, you want the
stuff that's going to last.
While staples like dried pasta have a relatively long shelf life of a few years, what are the
foods that last almost forever, or close to it?
Honey is one of the few foods that not only doesn't expire, but it also doesn't deteriorate
in quality.
Give it 20 years, 50 years, or 100 years, and it'll still taste the same way it did
when you bottled it up.
Don't believe it?
National Geographic reported that archaeologists found 3,000-year-old pots of perfectly edible
honey when unearthing Egyptian tombs.
And yes, even that funky-looking crystallized honey is perfectly safe to eat, just soak
the bottle in some warm water first and the crystals will disappear.
What makes honey different from just about every other food?
For starters, it has a very low water content.
Microbial growth requires water, which is why fresh fruits and vegetables expire so
quickly.
Combine that with honey's low pH, and you've got an environment where its nearly impossible
for bacteria to grow.
Finally, add in honey's antibacterial properties and the presence of hydrogen peroxide, and
you have a product with an eternal shelf life.
There's a reason we've been using salt as a preservative for hundreds of years.
Natural salt, with no additives, will never go bad.
Like honey, salt doesn't contain any water, preventing the conditions that cause food
to spoil.
And salt also won't lose its flavor or potency over time, as long as you're careful to store
it correctly.
That means keeping it dry, so anyone who lives in a humid environment will want to keep salt
in an airtight container.
So why does some salt have a best-by date?
It may have additives.
Because iodine and other anti-caking agents that might be added to the salt do degrade,
the shelf life of salt containing those additives is reduced to about five years.
Some retailers also refuse to carry products without a sell-by date, so you may find a
sticker slapped on your additive-free salt.
As long as salt is the only ingredient, it should be safe to eat well after that date
passes, so feel free to stock up.
There are only a few reasons to keep a package of instant coffee on hand: it's actually the
year 1965, you're going on a backpacking trip, or you're doing some doomsday prepping.
"They gravitate towards things they did when they were alive."
"Coffee…"
Its portability can't be questioned, but few people know that, according to Your Coffee
Buzz, instant coffee will stay fresh forever — even after opening the packaging, as long
as it's stored properly.
We use the word "fresh" here lightly, though, because it's made by drying a concentrated
solution of pre-brewed coffee.
The coffee extract is then spray-dried using hot air to transform the liquid into a fine
powder, or it's frozen and dried under vacuum.
Either way, once the process is finished, the coffee lacks any water that could lead
to spoilage.
Consuming expired whole bean or ground coffee won't make you sick, but it also won't taste
that great.
Fresh coffee loses flavor pretty rapidly and the grounds can also grow mold over time,
so it's best to have the instant stuff on hand to get your caffeine fix if your regular
coffee goes stale.
You don't want to be caught without coffee in the house.
"Who doesn't have instant coffee?”
“I don’t.”
“Buy a jar of Folgers crystals, you put it in the cupboard, you forget about it.
Later on when you need it, it’s there.
Lasts forever, it’s freeze-dried."
If your favorite vodka or whiskey is on sale at the local liquor store, you may want to
stock up, because hard alcohol is one of those things that almost never expires.
Even those dusty bottles at the back of your grandparent's liquor cabinet are likely still
good to go, along with that extra-special bottle saved for a 10- or 25-year anniversary.
There's good news: as long as it's pure alcohol and doesn't have any added ingredients like
fruit or cream, it should last indefinitely.
That said, it might not look or taste quite the same as it did back in the day, especially
if you've opened the bottle.
Some alcohol will get weaker after a few decades, and it can also lose its flavor and change
color.
If the alcohol content drops below 25 percent, it can also become a breeding ground for yeast
and bacteria.
As a general rule of thumb, if it looks weird or smells funky, it might be time to toss
it out.
Otherwise, you can enjoy come truly vintage drinks, even up to a 50-year anniversary.
Go ahead, be sentimental!
The process by which non-fat powdered milk is made is pretty neat, and it also allows
it to last almost forever.
Manufacturers start by removing water from the milk and separating out the milk fats,
the two components that cause dairy to spoil.
Then, the milk is dried using an evaporator to turn it into powder.
Keep the powdered milk in a cool place below 60 degrees Fahrenheit to extend the storage
life past any dates, and if you pop it in the freezer, and it will last forever.
Rehydrated powdered milk won't taste as good as the fresh stuff, but it can be super helpful
to have some on hand.
There are various types of cooking oil, and they all have their pros and cons.
When it comes to shelf life, though, coconut oil is that one that lasts longer than most
cooking oils.
But according to EatByDate, virgin or extra-virgin coconut oil, in fact, really never expires.
The key here is to make sure you're picking up unrefined coconut oil if you want it to
last forever.
That's because the refining process weakens the saturated fats' ability to stave off oxidation
and makes the product susceptible to turning rancid.
Many people are attracted to refined coconut oil because of its neutral aroma and flavor,
but it's only good for about 18 months.
While unrefined oil has a very coconut-forward flavor, it also has a significantly longer
shelf life.
For some, that's totally worth it.
Most of us don't think much about soy sauce as we're drizzling it on our rice or mixing
it with wasabi for dunking our sushi, but it's actually a fermented product with an
indefinite shelf life.
A whole bunch of science takes place during the manufacturing process, but in short: edible
mold converts starches into sugars and develops all kinds of complex flavors that make soy
sauce so lovable.
Because of that fermentation process, and a high sodium content that prohibits microorganisms
from growing, soy sauce is unlikely to spoil if it's unopened.
Open the bottle, though, and the oxidation process starts immediately, which means it
can darken in color and intensify in flavor, so it'll taste best if you use it within six
months of cracking the seal.
Store it in the refrigerator, and you'll extend the life to two years.
When it comes to the microwave packets, we can't recommend using them past the best-by
date, as these products contain added oils and fats that can go rancid over time.
The loose kernels, on the other hand, will last indefinitely if you store them in an
airtight container or a cool, dry area.
There's one caveat here: You'll have a better chance of getting all the kernels to pop if
they're fresh, and they'll transform into larger, fluffier pieces of popcorn when they're
young, too.
That makes them best consumed within about a year.
If you find yourself having trouble getting older kernels to pop, don't toss them out
— they may just need to be rehydrated.
In What Makes Popcorn Pop?, David Woodside suggests adding a tablespoon of water to a
few cups of popcorn kernels.
Place the contents in a jar and shake it until the kernels absorb the water.
Let them sit for a few days, then pop as normal.
Dried beans are an excellent source of protein, fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants, making
them a great product to stock up on… especially if you're prepping for the end of the world,
and other protein sources might be difficult to come by.
And they can last indefinitely if stored in a cool, dry place.
Sounds like a wonder food, right?
When it comes to quality, though, decades-old beans may not be quite as good as fresh.
A study by Brigham Young University prepared 32-year-old pinto beans for a group of 58
people, and 80 percent of study participants thought they would be just fine to use in
emergency situations when it came to taste and overall quality.
Not only that, the study found that beans retain their protein content over time, making
older varieties just as nutritious as the younger beans.
But that's emergency situations, and you may be willing to eat sub-par beans when your
life depends on it.
When it comes to everyday cooking, conventional wisdom says that you probably don't want to
store dried beans for longer than a couple years, and that's because older beans may
never get as tender as freshly harvested beans, no matter how long you cook them.
They'll definitely take longer to cook, so you should always soak older beans for at
least 12 hours before cooking them, and you may want to add baking soda to the mix if
your beans have been in the pantry for a while, as it will help to soften them.
Vinegar is one of those pantry ingredients that's always good to have on hand.
It's used in cooking, it's a key ingredient in salad dressings, and using it to make pickles
is an easy way to preserve food for later use.
It also has a variety of household uses: Apple cider vinegar can be used as a hair rinse
or mouthwash, and even turned into a multi-purpose cleaner.
The best part about vinegar?
According to studies conducted by the Vinegar Institute, vinegar's shelf life is almost
indefinite.
It's also self-preserving because of its acidic nature, which means it never needs to be refrigerated.
Over time, you may notice some color changes, the development of sediment, or a hazy feature
in some types of vinegar, but these changes don't affect the safety of the acidic liquid
itself.
If they bother you, stock up on white distilled vinegar, which will remain completely unchanged
over time, unlike many other pantry staples.
"Believe it or not, Twinkies have an expiration date.
Some day very soon, life’s Twinkie gauge is gonna go… empty."
Surprisingly enough, flour doesn't last forever.
All-purpose flour only has 10 to 15 months before it goes rancid, and wheat flour only
lasts six to eight months, although both will keep indefinitely in the freezer.
If you want to extend the shelf life to over a decade, you'll want to invest in a grain
mill to grind your own as you need it.
Hard grains like wheat, buckwheat, millet, and spelt are good for 10 to 12 years when
stored whole in an oxygen-free environment.
That shelf life lessens drastically once you grind the grain, though, because it's removing
a valuable, built-in protection.
Without its hard outer shell, the germ of the seed has nothing to keep it from releasing
its volatile oils, and over time those oils will turn rancid and create off flavors.
Soft grains still have a pretty long shelf life, too.
You can expect about eight years of storage from quinoa, oats, and barley, but their soft
outer shell doesn't protect the seed as well as the hard varieties.
Just look at it this way: if you are prepping for the end of the world, that gives you plenty
of time to figure out how to grow the first crop after, well… you know.
"We're doomed.”
“Welcome to the end times"
Spam was introduced to the world in 1937, and it only took a few short years for it
to become a household staple.
During World War II, Hormel estimates that more than 100 million pounds of Spam was shipped
abroad to feed Allied troops, and they've sold over 8 billion cans to date.
What makes people love Spam so much?
It's a ready-to-eat, shelf-stable, inexpensive, surprisingly versatile, and it actually tastes
pretty good, too.
Despite the common misconception that Spam lasts forever, Hormel recommends eating it
by the "best by" date stamped on the can to enjoy it at its best quality.
Like other canned meats, though, you can usually go two to five years after that date as long
as the can isn't bulging.
There are die-hard preppers debating the value of 30-year-old cans of Spam, and some sound
willing to give it a whirl if necessary.
While you might think twice about digging into a can that old, it's entirely possible
it'll be fine.
Apparently, the Can Manufacturers Institute says that the contents of a 100-year-old tin
of veal were analyzed, found to be perfectly good, and were fed to a cat in the late 1930s.
Apparently, the cat didn't complain, so maybe it's fine.
Maybe.
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite stuff are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.