Quark? Quack?

November 2, 2012 3:13 PM

Can I eat this filter > Unopened, refrigerated package of yoghurt. Expiration date was a week ago. Safe or not?

As mentioned above, I have a package of 500g Quark cheese/yoghurt (Dutch product, tastes like yoghurt rather than a soft cheese), it's been in the fridge since I got it and I haven't opened it yet, though the date of expiration is the 24th of October. Can I eat it or should I trash it?

posted by Trexsock to Food & Drink (23 answers total)

If it were me, I would judge by smell. Trust your body.
Or, you can do better still by just throwing it out. Yeah, if it were me, actually, I would probably just do that.
posted by herbplarfegan at 3:15 PM on November 2, 2012

Unless it smelled bad, I'd eat it.

Dairy products don't go bad nearly as often as they just turn into other dairy products.
posted by straw at 3:17 PM on November 2, 2012 [8 favorites]

It is definitely not worth it to eat it. I'd toss it.
posted by bearwife at 3:18 PM on November 2, 2012

I'd eat it, unless it smelled or looked off. Especially a relatively robust product like Quark.
posted by Frowner at 3:19 PM on November 2, 2012

Response by poster: Okay, so I opened it (looks fine), smelled it (smells fine) and tasted a bit of it and it tastes like sour cream or something close to that. Did I poison myself? That is to say, it tasted good, but not like what I expected.
posted by Trexsock at 3:22 PM on November 2, 2012

I add that I come from a dumpster-diving subculture and have seen a lot of food on the cusp of going bad - if it hasn't been opened, has been refrigerated, tastes and looks okay and is comparatively close to the sell-by date, in my experience it is more than likely fine. Now, if it has been sitting out in a dumpster in the summer sun for even a few hours, you should definitely throw it away!
posted by Frowner at 3:22 PM on November 2, 2012

In my life, I've learned that expiration dates on dairy products have to assume that people are pants on head stupid and haven't had a problem exceeding them. I smell things first, of course.
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 3:22 PM on November 2, 2012 [5 favorites]

I think you are entirely too worked up about it and shouldn't eat it if just because you'll be analyzing your every stomach gurgle. :)
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 3:26 PM on November 2, 2012

It's a sell by date, bit an eat by date. You're fine.
posted by atomicstone at 3:28 PM on November 2, 2012 [2 favorites]

I tend to go on the principle that "is [milk product] off?" is a question like "did my bike just develop a puncture?" or "am I in love?". That is, if you have to ask the question, the answer's no. When milk's rancid, there's no two ways about it.

This goes double for yoghurt, which is meant to be "off": that's why it's yoghurt, not milk :-).
posted by pont at 3:46 PM on November 2, 2012 [3 favorites]

Hi. I work in the commercial yogurt industry. The yogurt is fine to eat unless you see yeast (usually shows as pinkish) or mold (green, black, ect) on it.
posted by catseatcheese at 3:51 PM on November 2, 2012 [11 favorites]

It has already fermented, so unless there is mold or something else growing on it, it is fine to eat.
posted by ssg at 3:53 PM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]

The nose knows.
posted by Dolley at 3:57 PM on November 2, 2012

I have eaten expired yogurt many times and am fine. However, if I had myself convinced something might have gone off, I wouldn't enjoy it and my tummy might feel weird afterwards.
posted by futureisunwritten at 4:39 PM on November 2, 2012

I buy refrigerated sealed cartons of yoghurt and leave them unrefrigerated for a week or two so that they will develop a more sour flavour. I don't even look to see if they've passed their expiry dates. Once opened, I refrigerate. This works very well for me.
posted by TristanPK at 5:16 PM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]

Oh, hell yes, eat it. Yogurt is fairly rotted to start with, so what's the harm?
posted by BostonTerrier at 5:24 PM on November 2, 2012

You can eat it. If it it does not have either pink slim or green/black mold you are fine. The nose is another indicator, if it smells rotten then be concerned. I collect yogurt and have several year old stashes so, yeah, as long as it is refrigerated, sealed and has no other indicators of spoilage then you are good to go.
posted by jadepearl at 5:46 PM on November 2, 2012

As a side note, as long as the yogurt does not have the previously mentioned yeast or mold, the only thing that happens over time is that the pH continues to go down and the yogurt tastes more sour. Also, the "live and active cultures" start to die.
posted by catseatcheese at 5:54 PM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]

Quark cheese/yoghurt (Dutch product, tastes like yoghurt rather than a soft cheese)

This is entirely unclear from the European side of looking at it. Are you eating Yoghurt (in which case I'd totally eat it, following catseatchees'e evaluation), quark (which should taste sour, but not "a bit like sour cream" at all, and so I'd be more hesitant), or (soft) cheese? What consistency are we talking about?
posted by Namlit at 12:28 AM on November 3, 2012

I also have experience in the dairy/yogurt industry, and the expiration date is anywhere around 10 days in advance of it "going bad", as a buffer for sensitive stomaches. As for myself and my family, we eat yogurt that has exceeded the expiration date by up to four weeks without any issues. The texture may be a bit thicker, but it's fine as long as it has been sealed properly and temperature controlled.
posted by peachtree at 1:16 AM on November 3, 2012

Yoghurt stays good for ages. I'd eat it and so would my cat.
posted by h00py at 7:13 AM on November 3, 2012

Yesterday I found an unopened quart of Cabot full-fat Greek yogurt in my fridge. It still had the seal on it, and the expiry date was Sept. 10. I removed the seal and tasted it - delicious! So I ate it. No problem, two months after the sell-by.
posted by toodleydoodley at 8:55 AM on November 3, 2012

It's still good. There aren't as many live and active cultures left, but it's fine to eat. By the way, Greek yogurt is more sour creamy than non-Greek, juts in case you've never had it.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 4:24 PM on November 3, 2012