Open it up and taste it. It's probably fine, but you'll know.

I was watching episodes of Hoarders yesterday. The first thing they do is go through peoples fridges and pantries and throw away expired food. It's a health hazard. One woman had a bag of salad. Even tho it was past its' date, she said she planned to eat it because it was given to her by a food bank and had never been opened. The psych on the show just shook her head "why". I'd toss it.

I'm with Sushipup. May 18 wasn't that long ago, and it'll be obvious if it's not fit to eat. Most expiration dates are very conservative, to protect the manufacturer.

You are a week + 1 past the date, and it's probably fine. If you can't use it this weekend, I'd toss it. If I needed it for something that was going to be refrigerated for a couple of days or I was anticipating leftovers, I'd toss it and buy fresh especially if expecting guests - like my 86 yr old mother - a tummy ache for her would be a bigger crisis than one for me.

But open it, take a look and a taste. First sign of spoiling is the liquid will begin to separate and you'll see that, or check and see if the taste is sharper than your normal sour cream.

First, it's likely it's a "best if used by" date rather than an expiration date. For sour cream, unopened, in the frig, I'd say they're all positives with one caveat: What's the temp of your frig? Most people don't keep their refrigerators cold enough so I'm then apprehensive about food quality and degradation. Is it kept in the door or in the back at the bottom. There's definite temperature differences there.

I'm often a proponent of if in doubt, throw it out but as said, you'd know if it was bad so a quick taste will tell you, even the smell. If it were something that spoils quickly or easily, like pig or poultry, I'd agree with toss it, but most signs here point to try it.

FWIW I had some butter that was past it's best by date. I took a smell, taste and it was just fine and again, my frig is kept quite cold. Too cold for some! But it keeps the beer at the perfect temp!

I never look at the date on bag salad at home (I do in the store of course). If it's not limp as Five Guys fries and the bag isn't swollen up like an old woman's foot, I don't see how the vegetables in it can be bad. Many things have a good shelf life if stored properly.

I'm with you on the fridge temp issue Cynic. I keep mine at 36 degrees. My mother never kept her refrigerator cold enough and milk tasted horrid! For years I hated milk because of this..... I keep my milk, along with the carton of egg white's and other easily spoiled items at the back of the fridge right where the cold air blows out and the milk is icy cold. If you keep your refrigerator beer temp cold you would love this... I have a bottom drawer in my refrigerator called "Express Chill" I keep it stuffed full of cans of pop and keep the temp set at 33 degrees....When you pop the top, the pop turns to a soft, mushy icy mixture, it's so good.

I would open and inspect it my guess is that it is fine. As said it is a best if used by date.

It's actually a pull-date, not expired date or best-by date. The date that a retailer will pull the product from the shelves.

I'm also in the "should be fine" camp. Look, smell, taste first.

It's sour cream ..it's supposed to be sour...and that's the sell by date ..not the it's gonna be bad by date...eat it...

Milk is good one week after the date on the carton. So I don't think I would be worried about it. I sure wouldn't throw it out.

I bought some quart containers of yogurt, forgetting that we were going on a three week trip. When I got back it was 2 weeks past the use by date. I opened it, it looked fine, and I used it. I finally finished it 2 weeks after I opened it. I'm still alive.

Use by and expiration dates are extremely conservative, and are mainly to protect manufacturers, not consumers. I've also bought stuff that was clearly bad before the expiration date. Bottomline: trust your senses, not the magic date on the package.

A lot of people assume they have 'a bug' when it's really mild food poisoning.

Although the OP's sour cream is probably fine, my decision would be based on how difficult it is to go buy another carton -- and not worry about it -- especially if it's to be eaten by many people.

I keep a thermometer in my side-by-side refrigerator. I keep the fridge at 35F, although the gauge shows the fresh food safety range as 40-50F. The 'Freezing Range' is 0-30F.

All of this is dependent on how long something is NOT --refrigerated -- on a loading dock after store delivery, in your car trunk, etc. On Maui I put items into a cooler with a freezer cube for the ride home from the grocery. I don't want to *drink* my ice cream!

You all would be shocked at the food my mother has eaten over the years. Remember when there were no dates? Well, she doesn't really pay any mind to the dates printed on packages now, even dairy products. The woman has had an iron stomach for as long as I've know her!

I agree that a few people assume mild food poisoning is a bug of sorts but there's far more people who scream FOOD POISONING anytime they get an upset stomach too. People blame restaurants when they have a belly ache and that's not right either. Things happen. My sister is Celiac and the other day she was on a tyrade because she didn't feel well and it must have been something she ate and someone put something in the food she couldn't have. But when I pointed out that first, she hadn't eaten much and what she ate within 24 hours was food she prepared... LOL

And in retail, I've never heard of a "pull date". You would always pull things that are past the dates on the package. Must be something new.

That's what pull-date means, pull product from retail shelves. AKA a sell-by date. Not same as use-by date or best-by date.

Cynic, be sure to tell your sister that some restaurants shake a potatoes in a little flour before frying, (as in breakfast potatoes.) My dd had a miserable 3-4 months because of that!

I haven't learned my expiration date, yet ... but sometimes I don't smell too well ... ... or is that "good"?

ole joyfuelled ... with a bit of help from sour cream, on occasion ... sometimes after "best before" date.

joyfulguy-
My daughter has a theory that, as one ages, you start to rot from the inside. I used to think she was just cynical, but now I'm not so sure....