If you've ever stood in the kitchen and stared at a piece of bread while having an internal debate on whether or not to toss it because of some green mold on the crust, then this article is for you.
For some foods, it is perfectly OK to cut off the moldy section and continue eating . . . if you really want to.
Harder foods are often safer to eat because "it's harder for the mold to penetrate these foods," said Leslie Bonci, who is the director of sports nutrition at the Center for Sports Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
Examples of "hard" foods are carrots, firm cheeses and pears. If mold is any color other than blue, you must cut around it.
"Some molds can be quite toxic to the body. You can develop respiratory symptoms, gastrointestinal symptoms and sometimes allergies. Some are very dangerous," Bonci said.
With softer foods, it can be more complicated to tell if all of the mold has been eliminated, according to Today.com.
If you are unsure, it's best to just throw the item away to prevent getting sick. For example, if you have some moldy grapes, throw the entire bunch away. Washing them does not remove the mold.
Here is Bonci's list of approved moldy foods and methods on how to eat them:
Mold on hard fruit/veggies: Cut about ½ inch around the mold to get rid of it.
Hard cheese: cut about ½-1 inch around mold, rewrap cheese with new covering
Hard salami/dry cured ham: OK to use, mold adds flavor to the salami, can scrub the mold off the coating of the ham.
Gorgonzola/Bleu cheese: Cut out the moldy spot.
After you've eaten, do not put the remainder of the food back into the container as remnants of mold and bacteria are still in the packaging and will contaminate the food again.
If you spot mold on any of these foods, DO NOT eat them:
- Brie, Camembert
- Hot dogs
- Bacon
- Casseroles
- Leftovers
- Pasta
- Jams/jellies
- Yogurt/sour cream
- Lunch meat
- Cooked meats
- Soft fruits/ veggies/ even mold on orange rinds
- Bread/baked goods
- Sliced, shredded, cubed cheese
- Nuts/nut butters
If you can't tell by the sight of something whether or not it's bad, you can use your other senses to determine if it's good to eat.
By the time the furry growth is seen on the surface, deep "roots" may have penetrated the product, Today.com reported.
"If anything tastes musty, that's a pretty good indicator that there is mold in there," Bonci said.
A bad, overly pungent aroma is a dead giveaway that you should throw the food out, too.
You can minimize mold by eating leftovers 3-4 days after making the meals, cleaning your fridge regularly and scrubbing visible mold off of any surfaces.
