# Do you have out of date bottled salad dressing in your fridge? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 13, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386 "2013-07-13T04:10:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/1 "2013-07-13T04:10:59Z")
When did this stuff start expiring so quickly? Threw 3 bottles out today, I swear I just bought them, is this new?? ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/2 "2013-07-13T04:21:20Z")
On stuff like salad dressing, mustard, and ketchup, “expiration” dates amount to propaganda designed to get people to buy the stuff more often. (imho) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/3 "2013-07-13T04:23:52Z")
> [@DummyGladHands](#): > > When did this stuff start expiring so quickly? Threw 3 bottles out today, I swear I just bought them, is this new?? They’re probably still good. I don’t have any salad dressing in my fridge, but most of the “expiration” dates are suggestions rather than rules. I mean, what’s going to grow in an acidic environment like salad dressing in the fridge? I mean, I literally have salted hog casings in my fridge about two years old that are fine. With enough salt and/or acid, shit can last near forever in your fridge. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/4 "2013-07-13T04:25:23Z")
No, we don’t have any out of date salad dressing. We have one bottle of brand new French dressing (my husband’s), and one bottle of newish 99% fat free red wine vinegar dressing (and it’s mine, all MINE I tell you!). I go through the fridge on Monday and Thursday nights, because trash days are Tuesday and Friday. I think that one of the onions is sprouting, though, so I need to check on that tomorrow. Yes, I keep onions in the fridge, that way I don’t cry when I cut them. ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/5 "2013-07-13T05:22:58Z")
> [@](#): > > but most of the “expiration” dates are suggestions rather than rules Love it, but why do I keep seeing Geoffrey Rush saying it?? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/6 "2013-07-13T05:28:12Z")
No, but we rarely buy more than one bottle at a time. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/7 "2013-07-13T05:50:31Z")
Oh, I’m sure we do. Every time I go through the refrigerator there seems to be a bottle. I guess we eat out too much. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Tonya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/4491bb/32.png) [@Queen\_Tonya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Tonya)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/8 "2013-07-13T06:29:19Z")
I usually do. In my case, I host all the family holiday dinners, and wind up buying specific dressings for relatives, then throwing out a 90% full bottle when I notice it a year later. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/9 "2013-07-13T13:32:49Z")
> [@Queen\_Tonya](#): > > I usually do. In my case, I host all the family holiday dinners, and wind up buying specific dressings for relatives, then throwing out a 90% full bottle when I notice it a year later. Thanks for saving me the effort of writing this myself. 🙂 I don’t even buy them. The family brings them, and leaves them in my fridge. Every year. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/10 "2013-07-13T14:46:26Z")
I’ve frankly never paid attention to expiration dates. All condiments are refrigerated and as long as they don’t look or taste funny or have mold, they stay there till there’s about a third left in the bottle, and then I rinse and toss. They’re acidic, never known them to go ‘bad’, and after doing this for 40 years, we are all still alive. It’s sour cream that goes bad fast, the minute I open it, the clock is ticking. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-out-of-date-bottled-salad-dressing-in-your-fridge/663386/11 "2013-07-13T14:49:48Z")
Five bottles, four out of date, all in use. I don’t think I’ve ever thrown “out of date” salad dressing away.