rice

[bubbles4920]

i bought a paella kit years ago with the pan and spanish ingredients inside. im wanting to make a paella and wondered if i could still use the ingredients.
the calasparra rice says best before 2004, you an see how long ago i bought it. ive emptied the rice out of its hessian bag and it looks ok, no weavels or whatvever you get in rice. theres also sweet paprika in a tin, olive oil which expired in 2007 and saffron which was up in 2005. any ideas if these would be ok to use?
the box been stored away for years obviously sealed with cellophane.

[Buenchico]

As long as the dates are given as 'Best before', rather than 'Use by', it should be perfectly safe to use them.

Rice keeps for ages.

Olive oil sometimes 'settles out', so that it's heavier at the bottom than the top. (Simply shake the bottle vigorously for a minute or two).

Saffron might lose a bit of its 'edge' but it should otherwise be OK.

Anything in a tin usually keeps well for decades.

Chris

[Jugglering]

I would agree with Chris above.... we never used to have *best before* dates.. stuff just got eaten if it looked and smelled ok... You've checked for the obvious - mould, weevils, grubs and bugs - to be honest, not many of those would survive cooking anyway, so you're probably ok. If it smells *off* or tastes *strange* don't serve it up, but otherwise, enjoy ! The rice may well take a little longer to cook than if it was younger but I can't imagine it will taste any different.

[Brooksy]

I`d give it a definite go.