Toss. I use a lot of things past the date, but I wouldn't be comfortable with an opened two-month-past due meat product.

Man, I hate to waste it, it was close to a full package. Maybe I can fry it up for the dog?

I just cooked up an older package of bacon and it was fine... and nobody got sick. Now, my bacon was the actual smoked kind, so maybe that made a difference.

I wouldn't feed it to the dog, either. If you, like me, don't eat bacon often, keep it in the freezer. It will last months that way.

I tossed it. If it were just me and DH I'd use it, we have iron stomachs -- and it really did look, smell, and taste fine. This is food for a party, though -- I don't want to take any chances. Fortunately I bought a fresh package of bacon when I did my shopping yesterday since I figured I'd use up the old stuff for the potato salad.

We go in spurts with the bacon -- sometimes we go through a package quickly, other times we don't. I wasn't paying attention and let the date slip past me -- usually I try to use stuff up before it spoils. Oh well. It happens. Didn't know you could freeze it, though -- good to know in case I case catch a super-sale on the thick cut stuff (much prefer that over regular cut bacon).

This was the Wright hickory smoked -- it's good stuff!

I wouldn't have tasted an uncooked piece. I would only keep it a week if it had been opened.

I buy thick cut bacon which is how bacon used to be. I can't stand the see-through bacon that you can't even peel off a strip without tearing.

Anyway, I freeze it in pkgs of 4 or 5 strips.

We don't use a lot of bacon, but a strip or two makes a nice garnish for soup or salad. So when I do buy bacon, I cook the whole package (in the oven) til it is about 3/4 of the way to crisp, then cool and freeze. When I want a couple of slices, I microwave them until they are the desired crispness. Works for us and no waste.

Bacon was salted and smoked to preserve the meat....it was fine. Sell by dates are mostly a CYA sort of thing. If it wasn't moldy ( and I have had some very vintage bacon that was not moldy) and it didn't taste rancid, it was fine.

But be aware that smoking makes fat more likely to get an off rancid taste....frozen or not. I have had some very special bacon that I froze and used sparingly go "off".

Except in the case of contaminates that leave "poison" behind, cooked food is mostly always not going to make you sick. If the bacon is beginning to go off it won't taste good. In most cases....the nose knows!

I assure that the bacon was fine. Bacon is made into bacon in order to preserve it and you had it wrapped and refridgerated.

I can assure you that bacon and prosciutto, ...cured meats, can go rancid. Once the factory pacakge is compromised, opened, or gets a small hole in transit, it will start to deteriorate in contact with oxygen.

It may smell and look fine being so cold from the fridge. Recently happened to me wanting the first BLT of the season. I took a half pack from the freezer. Once it hit the heat it smelled off. Fortunately I had a fresh unopened pack in the fridge.

I've had an opened pack of prosciutto go off and a bit slimy. Did not pass the smell test. I always freeze prosciutto now in smaller packs of 4-6 slices now. Add a date when it is put in the freezer. Same with bacon. (the recent rancid pack was not dated)

Also very possible yours was fine. But why take a chance.

Certain refrigerators have cold spots very close to freezing so some items will last a bit longer. My horrid beach house fridge freezes water bottles if placed in the lower back. Horrid for fresh vegetables.

I usually freeze the bacon because i use so few. A neighbor told me a trick: lay the raw bacon as single pieces one by one on a long sheet of waxed paper; roll it up; put it in a zipbag or container; and freeze. When you want a piece - or three - you just unroll as much as you want and put the rest back in the freezer. I did just that this morning with a freshly opened pack of bacon.

Kate

I wouldn't eat it, especially if it were the regular stuff. It's a quick wet cure ranter than a goodly preserving cure that some bacon can have.

I wouldn't feed it to a dog, even cooked. Bacon and it's salts and stuff used in the curing aren't good for dogs. The question of if it's wholesome or not is an extra no.

If it had gone bad, it would have been obvious and it is highly unlilely to go bad in that short length of time.

The same thing with real peanut butter or other nut butters. We buy the stuff that has only nuts and I prefer to keep it . in the pantry. Hubs gets anxious and randomly puts it in the fridge. At the rate we consume it, there is no time for it to get rancid. It is a staple in our diet and is not going to stay that long.

And rancid bacon won't hurt you unless it becomes an everyday thing. Remember the bacon grease can that sat on the back of the stove, and was used for frying other things like potatoes, eggs, meats etc? Didn't kill our parents.

But it tastes nasty....same as rancid crackers.....and the older bottle of cooking oil....eww!

Of course fatty foods can go rancid, but mxk3 stated it looked , smelled and tasted fine, so it was likely just that. Unless one has an impaired sense of smell or taste, it's OK to trust one's senses

bees, your point about the difference in the curing process is a point well taken.

Still, it is full of salt and preservatives and if it is bad, you will know it when you take it out.

On the other hand, I read a couple of articles about those "best by" and "use by" dates on food. I think that one that I read was from NPR.

Anyway, there is much untruth, grains of truth, iffy truth and all manner of manipulative "truths" that abound when it comes to determining that time frame. Apparently,, there is next to no real governing regulation as to this and much of it was driven by the food industrial complex to their advantage. Surprised? Naw, surely you are NOT! Conspiracy? Probably more manipulative that a conspiracy.

The more times you get rid of your peanut butter or baking powder or that little bucket of dried buttermik, the more profti they make from selling you more. If your nut butter is bad you will know it.

In the case of cuiltured dairy products like buttermilk and yougurt I will use an unopened container months after the due date. Once it is opened , the clock will be ticking on it.

You have to exercise your own best judgment and put those printed dates into a real perspective.

I thought about posting the article, but decided that it might be too much information to be that interesting to many. You can google the subject if it interests you.

It was not the only article that I saw about it yesterday. It must have been some media micro trend because I was not looking for it.

I've said it before—the dates indicate until when they'll refund your money if the food is spoiled, separated, discolored or in other ways not top quality. It's not a magic self destuct date.

There was a big to-do a long time ago about medicines. There are a few kinds that can actually degrade into something bad. Most don't. The military studied this because they need to keep a stockpile in storage to be ready for whatever. They checked at least 1000 medicines. I think they said half a dozen had issues after ten years past the date. When your doctor says don't worry about the date on something, believe her. With food, you can tell by looking, smelling, tasting—and by keeping up good standards of food handling, not introducing bad bacteria on dirty hands, avoiding leaking/breached cans and cooking adequately. Medicine is more mysterious, but easy to check online whether the date for anything in particular is meaningful.

Well, here it is a week later and I'm perfectly fine after I ate an uncooked piece of it -- so it was indeed not spoiled. But like I said, I was using it for a party and I didn't want to take any chances. I kind of wish I would have just fried it up and used it myself, I don't like wasting food. Oh well.

I think it's better to be safe than sorry with meats. If your package had been unopened, I wouldn't have been as concerned.