Gholam Rahman| Palm Beach Post
Question: I found a jar of orange marmalade in the back of the cupboard that is several years old. The seal on the bottle seems OK. Is it safe to use the jam? – Elaine or West Palm Beach
Answer: Food that has been vacuum packed in cans or glass bottles remains generally safe for a very long time, if properly stored and the vacuum seal is intact. One way of testing the seal is to press on the slightly raised “button” on the metal lid. If it clicks, the vacuum seal is broken and the product should be discarded.
Even if the seal is intact, the quality and taste of what is inside is likely to have suffered if it is too old.
Look for the use-by date on the bottle. It is generally imprinted on the side of the lid, but could be anywhere from the lid top to the bottom of the jar. A year or so past the expiration date may not matter too much for a sugary jam product. Pop the lid off and give it a sniff test to see if it meets muster.
Here is a tip that can save you a wrestling bout when taking off the vacuum-sucked lid. Upend the bottle and shake it to bring the content down toward the lid. With the jar still upended, give a few smart taps on the metal lid with a wooden meat mallet, or a hard-rubber regular mallet.
As you tap, hold the mallet at an angle to the lid edge. If mallets aren’t handy, tap the lid edges similarly on the floor or the counter. The intent here is to loosen any encrusted detritus between the lid and bottle rim and force some air in to weaken the seal. If this is done right, you can twist the lid off with perfect ease.
Whether it is worth using what you find inside your old jam bottle will of course depend on your taste test.
Q: We have a juicing machine. Should we have to wash the fruits and veggies before putting them in the juicer? – Maye of Stuart
A.: Absolutely. You not only have to wash them, but wash them quite well – under running water and rubbing them firmly between your hands if the fruits and veggies are firm, such as oranges, apples, carrots and cucumbers. Drying hard fruits veggies later by rubbing with a clean kitchen towel is also a good idea since the action will help take off more contaminants.
You should wash them not just to take off – or at reduce substantially – any pathogens that may have accumulated on them through their long trek from the field to the market and then to your kitchen, but also to remove much of the fertilizers and pesticides that may have gotten on them.
You should do this not just when you are juicing. You should take the same precaution, when you are cutting or chopping any fruits and vegetables, either for cooking or for table use. The knife blade is likely to carry into the flesh whatever may have been outside on the skin. We even wash salad leaves and herbs that we have grown in our backyard. We don’t want any remnants of bird droppings or the territory-marking effluence of marauding cats and dogs. Banana is probably our only exception.
One caveat: In your enthusiasm, do not use dish washing detergent or other soaps to do the washing. The residue that in all likelihood will remain can do more harm than what little just a water-wash would leave behind. The specially formulated fruit-and-vegetable soaps are expensive and are not really needed.
