Is expired sushi rice still good

Question

I found sushi rice from 2018, hermetically packed and it looks fine.

Is this still safe to eat and can I expect major structural or taste changes?

Answer 1

Dried foods, such as rice, which include "sushi rice", do not expire as other non-dried foods do.

Let's consider a practical real-life example from which we can infer from and have that inferred info applied directly to your case here: When you think about it, these dried foods are ideal for giving to food banks and charity drives because of their long shelf-life. They simply do not spoil in a short period of time as other non-dried foods may. That's why they're ideal for said purposes! Thus, if its good enough for that, it's probably good enough for us too.

Also, now, depending on your locale, sometimes, products are forced to have expiry dates or bb (best before) dates because of government regulation. Theories about why this exist may abound, but, the long-short of it is that you may not need to worry or fret about dried foods that are held past a best before date.

As a precaution, you may check for signs of spoilage via moisture, fungal growth, and infestation/vermin/rodent damage, as sometimes the storage method was poor or failed (say in the case of flooding) of one's storage area. But, generally speaking, if there is no foul smell, and everything is dry and clean, you should be perfect to make sushi.

Some foods tend to lose potency especially when they are high-flavor or herby or tend to spoil (or go rancid in the case of fats), over long periods of storage. But, rice should be fine, generally speaking.

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

"Best by" dates are used for quality, not safety. Cook it and give it a try. The favor and/or texture may be impacted, but you will need to decide if that matters to you. As long as it is dry and bug free...this is not a safety issue.

Answer 3

I would be very wary.

I have been thinking, as the other answers here suggested, there is nothing in the rice that could go off, there are no fats - it is almost pure carbohydrate. However, I tried rice of similar age just this winter, and it was bad. Before cooking, it seemed more or less fine, maybe slight off-smell but that could be from outside or whatever, I thought. But the cooking emphasized it into smell similar to rancid oil (e.g., in old biscuits). Simply, it smelled terrible.

I would say for rice with best before date long gone, it must be 100 % perfect or throw it out. And please, do have a backup if you are going to try it.

Answer 4

Doesn't seem like there are high risks, besides it possibly not tasting the best (i.e. don't use it for your mom-in-law's dinner visit)

HealthLine Does Rice Go Bad?

Below are the shelf lives of each type of rice (1, 2):

White rice: up to 2 years Brown rice: 3–6 months from the date of manufacture

Shelf-stable foods usually have an expiration date — often called best-by or use-by date. Still, they may be safely consumed after that date if there are no signs of deterioration on the product’s package (1).

Determining whether dry rice has gone bad is relatively easy.

Just check the package for spoilage signs, including holes, bugs, dampness, or water, which may lead to mold growth.

When it comes to brown rice specifically, you may also look for discolorations, a rancid or funny smell, or an oily texture.