Kitchen answer
How can you tell if food in the fridge is still good?
Trust smell, texture, and color over the printed date — sour or ammonia smells, slime, and fuzzy mold mean discard.
What else to know
- Best-by dates measure peak quality, not safety.
- Anything left above 40°F (4°C) for more than two hours should go.
- When cooked leftovers pass four days in the fridge, freeze or discard them.