How should I manage my fridge?

Question

I try to be careful, I really do, but I found a week old cod smelling 'fishy' in my fridge. Normally, I put the date on the package, so at least I know how long things 'last' in there (lost and forgotten).

So, I made a roster. On the first column is the name of the product/preparation, the first row is the day of the month. I'm putting the number of rations in the cells, and draw a line till the best before date.

I'm thinking about marking prepared foods like:

1. In a container (two days)

2. In a vacuum (seven days)

3. Cooked sous-vide (twenty-one days).

4. For the freezer, I'm thinking about ninety days.

Do you think this is a workable system? How do restaurants keep track of their inventory? Is it too complicated? Am I too harsh with the # of days (for instance, should these be depending on the food item?)

Answer

You may very well be able to make that system work for you, but in the two fine-dining restaurants I've worked, the system is much simpler. It is based on constant rotation, labeling, and organized storage. This lets you see at a glance what you have, rather than having to maintain a constant inventory list.

The system works like so:

• ALWAYS rotate the same kind of foods on a first-in-first-out (FIFO) basis, and never open a new container until the old one is used up. New product goes behind the old stuff, so the old product gets used first.
• ALWAYS label food with the date prepared, using masking tape and a permanent marker, and make sure the label (or container's expiration date) is toward the front.
• Regularly inventory perishable foods, noting foods that are about to go bad, or have already gone bad. Remove anything spoiled promptly so as not to contaminate anything nearby.
• Organize your fridge/walk-in/freezer, so food goes in the same spot every day. This way you can see at a glance what is fresh and what needs to be restocked.
• Keep foods cold, and for very hot foods, cool them before storing. Stocks and soups are chilled in an ice-water bath, and then allowed to refrigerate with the lid off for a few hours to allow heat to escape.
• Produce that is starting to go bad will last longer if the items that are spoiling are tossed. For example, you can get a couple extra days out of Spring Mix by removing bad leaves and rinsing the remainder thoroughly with cold water.

At home, I use a very similar system, with a few modifications:

• Pre-packaged containers get labelled with an opened-on date, because usually this determines when they spoil more than the expiration date.
• There is no such thing as a precise expire date, but almost no leftovers are trustworthy for more than a week unless frozen. If not cooled promptly they need to be frozen or gone in a few days.
• If it smells even a little off, it's probably unsafe, with the exception of milk
• Don't buy meat or fish without a specific meal plan, or at least a schedule for use. This prevents stuff like meat or fish from sitting in the fridge and spoiling.
• Don't buy produce without a meal plan, or knowing that I'm about to run out.

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