Shelf-stable products that shouldn't be

[Fat Guy]

Over the past decade or so I've been seeing more and more products that used to be sold only in the refrigerator or freezer section repackaged for shelf stability. Milk is probably the most obvious example, with chocolate milk in particular now being mostly out of the refrigerator.

Shelf-stable milk does not taste as good to me as refrigerated milk, though I confess I haven't done a blind tasting.

Today I tried some shelf-stable tortellini, which I thought were markedly inferior to the refrigerated and frozen kind -- so much so that no blind tasting is required.

What else should go back to the fridge?

[Darienne]

Smoked salmon. I tried a couple of kins off the shelf in Costco...terrible.

[BeeZee]

Pudding cups...I always look at them suspiciously in the supermarket...and they say they are made with "real milk".

[haresfur]

Smoked salmon. I tried a couple of kins off the shelf in Costco...terrible.

Um, I think smoked salmon is one of the original shelf-stable products.

[emannths]

Lard? Of course, whether you consider leaf lard and the shelf-stable partially hydrogenated stuff to be the same thing is a debate for another topic...

[CFT]

Jelly/jello in individual pots.

[Genkinaonna]

Turkey and stuffing...in fact, any "complete meal" that doesn't need to go in the fridge is kind of disturbing in my book...

[Doodad]

Bacon. That stuff scares me.

[jsmeeker]

Lard? Of course, whether you consider leaf lard and the shelf-stable partially hydrogenated stuff to be the same thing is a debate for another topic...

There is a debate over this?

I thought we all knew they weren't close to the same thing.

[mkayahara]

Bacon. That stuff scares me.

Ditto that. I've never been able to bring myself to buy it, though it's no doubt possible that I've eaten it unknowingly.

[ruthcooks]

Chicken broth. All it takes is one psycho--or evil child--and a pin to poke and destroy without your knowledge. Tuna in pouches, also.

[Shalmanese]

Hollandaise and Bernaise sauce.

[haresfur]

I was bicycle camping in England one time and got a withering look when I asked for UHT milk. I had to guzzle the liter of fresh outside the shop but it was the best milk I have ever tasted. That being said, shelf stable milk is vastly superior to on-the-edge or over-the-edge "fresh" milk. I don't go through a lot of milk and even new containers of fresh milk, especially plastic can taste a bit off. The shelf stable milk lasts a long time in the fridge after opening.

Most stores here have the eggs on the shelf. Perhaps this helps the difficult to peel hard-boiled egg problem.

Fresh tofu is vastly superior to the shelf-stable packs if it is really fresh.

[andiesenji]

Jelly/jello in individual pots.

Those are so lame! How easy is Jello - no cooking required.

Perhaps these are aimed at people who truly can't "boil water."

My kids used to make Jello, usually daily and sometimes on weekends, twice a day.

This was just about the time small plastic "disposable" tumblers appeared on the market and after the Jello had been cooled with cold water, these were filled and refrigerated, sometimes with inclusions of fruits &etc., and usually topped with heavy cream (unwhipped) or cottage cheese.

I thought these were better for them than candy or commercial sweets and certainly less expensive.

[CFT]

I think they're designed for lunch boxes. But they don't really feel like real jelly/jello to me. More like a quick dissolving gummy sweet/candy.

[BadRabbit]

Bacon. That stuff scares me.

There are some extremely good shelf stable bacons. I know Broadbent is shelf stable and I believe that Benton's is as well.

[David A. Goldfarb]

We often have the shelf stable milk in our office, and I use it in my coffee, but I can't say that I really like it. To me the difference in taste is obvious.

Vacuum packed shelf stable gnocchi aren't so different from gnocchi sold for the freezer or refrigerator.

I tried the dried shelf-stable tortellini once and didn't particularly care for it.

I think the Pomi tomatoes in the box are fresher tasting than many of the analogous canned products.

[Fat Guy]

I think the Pomi tomatoes in the box are fresher tasting than many of the analogous canned products.

Pomi tomatoes in a box are one of the great underrated ingredients of our era. I think people don't understand them because they don't have as much salt as canned, but once you adjust for that expectation their flavor is amazing.

In general, when you go from canned to aseptic boxes I think you see improvements. Chicken stock in a box is much better than chicken stock in a can, for example. But those are both forms of shelf-stable packaging. I think the loss in quality comes when you go from refrigerated to shelf-stable.

[andiesenji]

I like the Pomi Tomatoes also, however, I always inspect the container carefully before I put it in my shopping basket because I once put one in my basket and when I got to checkout I noticed it was oozing from one corner.

I pointed it out to the checker and she suggested that I had "dropped" it into the basket. As it was in the upper section, along with eggs, I protested this and refused to pay.

The manager appeared, sent someone for another box and had a few private words with the checker.

I hate to make trouble but I wasn't going to buy a questionable product.

[natasha1270]

I'm told the refrigerated versions of soy milk/almond milk are also better than the shelf versions.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Bacon. That stuff scares me.

There are some extremely good shelf stable bacons. I know Broadbent is shelf stable and I believe that Benton's is as well.

And then there's this:

http://www.campingsurvival.com/yocaba.html?gclid=CNahzfyZrKcCFac65QodhnawBA

Now THAT stuff scares me.

[tomdarch]

And then there's this:

http://www.campingsurvival.com/yocaba.html?gclid=CNahzfyZrKcCFac65QodhnawBA

Now THAT stuff scares me.

It should scare you - with it's camo label, it could sneak up on you in the woods and go all Rambo on you!

But, yes, UHT (ultra-pasteurized, shelf stable) milk does taste odd - it has been cooked, after all. But, when I can find it in small "drink box" size, I'll grab a pack. It's great to have on the shelf if we run out of milk some morning.

[David Ross]

Little plastic individual creamers that airlines give you when you ask for "cream" with your coffee. "No refrigeration needed." I've always wondered what chemical gasses shot through that cream.

[cbread]

Chicken broth. All it takes is one psycho--or evil child--and a pin to poke and destroy without your knowledge. Tuna in pouches, also.

Another way to ruin a shelf safe boxed product is a supermarket employee cutting open corrugated boxes using a box cutter a little too aggressively. I had one box of chicken broth that turned out to have been sliced not quite through the full thickness of the container. Over time with a couple of handlings that flexed the damaged surface it lost it's integrity and gradually leaked onto a shelf in my pantry.

[TongoRad]

And then there's this:

http://www.campingsurvival.com/yocaba.html?gclid=CNahzfyZrKcCFac65QodhnawBA

Now THAT stuff scares me.

It should scare you - with it's camo label, it could sneak up on you in the woods and go all Rambo on you!

But, yes, UHT (ultra-pasteurized, shelf stable) milk does taste odd - it has been cooked, after all. But, when I can find it in small "drink box" size, I'll grab a pack. It's great to have on the shelf if we run out of milk some morning.

It does serve a purpose; we keep a sixpack of small ones in case of power outages or refrigerator emergencies. Of course, it's rare that it ever comes to that so then I'll gradually use them in my coffee as the expiration date approaches. Those few times they've been required, though, keep them in the pantry at all times.

I do enjoy a shelf stable butterscotch pudding every now and then when I'm brown bagging it. It's not the best, for sure, but enjoyable enough for when the choice is that or nothing.