Food-safety guidance on handling, cooking, storage, spoilage signs and when food should be discarded.
A dry, healed crack on an otherwise firm tomato is usually a quality issue and can be trimmed. A wet split with mold, slime, off odor, or decaying flesh is a reason to discard the tomato.
An intensely bitter zucchini should not be eaten. The taste can signal elevated cucurbitacins, natural plant compounds that normal cooking does not reliably inactivate.
A few dark or black seeds can develop with maturity or storage and do not automatically make a firm, clean pepper unsafe. Fuzzy growth, wet rot, slime, softness, or an off odor is a reason to discard it.
Treat cooked quinoa like other cooked grains: refrigerate within 2 hours, keep it at 40°F/4°C or below, and use it in about 3–4 days. It also freezes well in portions, though thawed quinoa may be slightly drier.
Quinoa is naturally gluten-free and is not related to wheat, barley, or rye. The main concern for celiac disease is cross-contact during harvesting, milling, or packaging, so certified or clearly labeled gluten-free products offer more assurance.
There is no single shelf-life number for every kefir. Commercial products should follow the package date and after-opening directions; homemade batches vary with culture and hygiene. Keep either type cold, covered, and discard it if mold or clearly abnormal spoilage appears.
To make strawberries last longer, refrigerate them promptly, keep them dry, wait to wash until eating, and remove damaged or moldy berries. UC Davis data show why temperature dominates: strawberry respiration at room temperature can be roughly ten times the rate near 32°F.
Flour often deteriorates quietly. The first clue may be a rancid smell resembling old oil, paint, cardboard, or stale nuts. Moisture, mold, insects, larvae, or pantry-pest webbing are stronger discard signs. Whole-wheat flour has a shorter room-temperature life because it retains the oil-rich germ.
USDA lists about 1–2 weeks as a general refrigerated range for yogurt at 40°F (4°C) or below. Once opened, follow the manufacturer’s directions and use it sooner when practical. A little whey on top can be normal; mold, a swollen container, unexpected gas, or a clearly abnormal odor are not.
Strawberries combine delicate skin, abundant water, rapid metabolism and susceptibility to gray mold. Refrigeration slows those processes but does not stop them, which is why one damaged berry can deteriorate quickly and affect its neighbors.
For most intact fruit, washing shortly before you eat or cut it is the simplest approach. Rinse under running water, do not use soap, and dry if needed. If you wash before storage, dry the fruit thoroughly because lingering moisture can encourage faster deterioration.
Fresh mushrooms deteriorate quickly. Slight drying, wrinkling, or darkening can simply mean age, while a slippery slime, sour or strong off odor, visible mold, and watery breakdown are clear reasons to discard them.