Doctor Glyndwr wrote:
Cavey wrote:
Quote:
But I wouldn't be happy to eat mayonaise that's been opened and stored at room temperature for 2 months, as contrary to the manufacturers instructions, no. For the reasons stated. As I said before, what exactly is your issue with putting a jar of mayo or tommy sauce in the fridge, in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations? Don't you believe them or something?
So manufacturer's instructions on honey = ignorable, manufacturer's instructions on ketchup = mandatory? Why the distinction?
Why the distinction? Well, in the case of syrup, it's a fact that this is a super-saturated sugar solution; it's a fact that nothing on Earth can live in it, so much so that it can be used to sterilise wounds, as I've said previously. So I guess, that's good enough for me; the worst that's going to happen is that sugar might start crystallizing out, but that's never going to do me any harm. Because science.
Conversely, in the case of mayonnaise, it's a fact that this can - and does - spoil; bacteria is more than happy to thrive and multiply in it, if the conditions are right. (In fact, mayonnaise is frequently linked as a cause of food poisoning IIRC; raw eggs and fat can certainly get rancid). Like I said, I've seen it with my own eyes, having been handed a whiffy, encrusted, unrefrigerated jar of Hellman's before now, and it turned my stomach then, just as it does now. Call me a ponce by all means, but it's not for me, basically.
I saw some news article or other on Granada Reports (or similar) a couple of years back, where people were complaining that Sainsbury's tomato ketchup bottles were exploding in their cupboards. The reason, it was found, was due to less and less additives - potassium sorbate, salt etc. - being added to satisfy ever-increasing market demands for less additives and salt over time, whereupon it became viable for bacterial growth if it wasn't refrigerated,
contrary to manufacturer instructions. The 'explosion' was, of course, due to anaerobic bacterial growth - CO2 gas being produced - whose gas pressure built up to such an extent, given the immense scale of microbial growth (
), that the actual bottle/vessel suffered catastrophic failure. This wouldn't happen if it was refrigerated and within the use-by date.
So then, call me old fashioned etc., but I don't want to be eating the pre-explosion bacterial soup, and I
really don't want to be eating the rotten, raw eggs equivalent in similarly mis-stored mayonnaise.
For me then, it's a no-brainer: I would no more not store an opened jar of mayo in the fridge than I would a pint of opened milk or a packet of sausages. It's perishable food that needs correct handling and storage.
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Beware of gavia articulata oculos...
Dr Lave wrote:
Of course, he's normally wrong but
interestingly wrong