Note to self re food:

4 years ago

Be more diligent throwing stuff out before you go away!

We got back last Saturday from being away for three weeks. Over the next couple of days, I culled a bunch of things from the fridge that really should have gone before we left; they definitely were well past being edible or even safe to eat. DH announced he had thrown out the green bread on the counter (didn’t see it but probably just the tail end of a loaf).

But there was a mystery smell. Every time we went near the microwave/coffee making area, there was a really unpleasant smell which gradually got worse.

Checked in, under and behind the microwave. Nothing. Looked in the pot drawers under the counter there, even pulled them right out to see underneath. Zip. Emptied the trash bin, washed it. Smell still there. Beginning to think maybe a mouse or rat had died in the wall and we were going to have to live with it until it eventually went away.

Then today, as I was putting some lunch in the microwave and facing in a direction I don’t normally do, it struck me. Near to the microwave is a hanging basket holding a black cloth bag where the potatoes are kept. “I found the smell!” I yelled in triumph to DH as I removed a plastic bag of liquid and mush that once had been some potatoes- kipflers?

I can’t recall how long it has been since last I smelled a rotten potato but I do hope it’s a long, long time before I smell another one :-P

Featured Answer

CA Kate z9

4 years ago

last modified: 4 years ago

Funny thread! LOL

My mother always smelled a large bag of onions or potatoes before buying. If it smelled 'off' she'd check another and another until she found one to her satisfaction.

I had an onion that started to grow. It was quite an art-piece on my table until one morning the whole house smelled decidedly oniony. So much for my 'art piece'.

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Comments (11)

lindac92
4 years ago
rotten potatoes are among the worst of smells....Rotten onions are pretty close though!
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annie1992
4 years ago
Ew, I agree, rotten potatoes stink to high heaven. Cleaning the fridge before I go away is something I should be more diligent about too. Especially things like milk and produce.

Annie
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colleenoz
Original Author
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
“Rotten onions are pretty close” - that’s funny, Linda: I said the same thing to DD earlier this evening :-)

When I worked in a hotel restaurant which used to order its onions in big 20kg sacks, I could always tell if there was a rotten one just walking into the pantry.
bcskye
4 years ago
Oh, no! I've done that and it is a horrible smell and if the bag isn't a good one, a real mess to clean up.

Madonna
colleenoz thanked bcskye
Islay Corbel
4 years ago
In can do one better. Years ago we had a cat. I had roasted a chicken and

it was too warm to put in the fridge straight after dinner and to make sure the cat didn't get at it, i put in a cold oven that I didn't use very often. You can imagine the rest. I forgot it. The smell got worse and worse...........vile!
colleenoz thanked Islay Corbel
2ManyDiversions
4 years ago
Kate, I love your onion sculpture! I've never smelled rotten potatoes, thankfully. Sadly I can top you all. If you have a squeamish stomach, read no further:

At the ripe age of 18 and on my own, I left what will forever remain an unknown dish in the back of the fridge far after the power went out in it. The one thing I missed in cleaning out the fridge. A full week later I smelled something beyond foul... opened it up to find 'crawlies'. I screamed, donned plastic gloves and used long tongs to remove it from the house. I'm still not over the horror.
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nancyjane_gardener
4 years ago
We used to host a Pre Thanksgiving Feast and Fiasco for all of our friend, many who were too broke to make it home for the holiday.

We had a 1950s stove that had a warming oven.

We had our party, then left the next day for a week with the relatives.

We had left a roast beef in the warmer!

I think we had to spend 2 nights at my parents' house leaving the doors open before we could return! (We lived in the country and in those days no one locked their doors!)
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colleenoz
Original Author
4 years ago
Oh, that sounds ghastly, Nancyjane.
sherri1058
4 years ago
I have one too! I have zero recollection of doing this, but one day as I was setting the table I got a whiff of something foul. Next night, same thing, and again. I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. The cabinet only held dishes, and there was nothing on the counter or in drawers below. I also thought it must be a mouse in the wall until some days later I discovered that someone (probably me) put the cream and sugar containers back into the top shelf without emptying the cream.
nancyjane_gardener
4 years ago
colleenoz It WAS! Sherri, I also remember having a rainy Easter and hiding eggs inside the house......ONE egg not found!
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Note to self re food:

CA Kate z9

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