All I know is Emeril AND Alton Brown both told me that spices don't say potent for very long and that I should refresh my spice collection every 6 months.

But then, I don't cook.

Even still, this will not be enough to convince my father that I do not NEED the two pound bag of dry mustard owned by HIS GRANDMOTHER. (sadly, it lives alongside a number of other products owned by that same great lady, originally meant for cooking but now may be used as a substitute for dry concrete mix)

A great way to always have fresh spices is to buy them in small quantities from the bulk section at Whole Foods. Not only is this cheaper than buying individually packaged spices, but the quality is often a cut above what you find in the supermarket. It also leaves a much smaller environmental footprint, because there is a lot less packaging involved.

I remembered this from a Pop-Up video of the Spice Girls. They warned people that spices go stale after 6 months. They were soooo right ;o)

Yeah, I guess I could go ahead and toss the spices I bought around 2 years ago when I had a brief desire to actually start cooking...

Also, I find the tip "If it's from Baltimore, it's at least 15 years old" to be incredibly cute.

@Eilonwynn:

Ha ha ha ha! WIN.

I wish there were some way to buy smaller quantities of seldom-used spices at nonexorbitant prices. I'm sure most of mine are expired, except for cinnamon, chili powder, cumin, and dill, which we go through like gangbusters.

I have a salt shaker in my desk drawer that's 15 years old. Still salty. Who knows when these things should expire? So much of our foodstuffs are undated.

And like the heavily advertised 3000-mile oil change, how do we know they aren't just trying to get us to purchase replacements unnecessarily?

Months ago I read a story about spices that said the same spices you can find in the spices aisle at the Supermarket are a fraction of the price when you buy the same spice in the ethnic foods section of the store. Of course you may have to get past the foreign language packaging. You can also try international food stores or cost clubs like Costco.

@Elijah-M: Exactly. I cook all the time, though not as much as I like. I go through spices pretty frequently, and buying fresh ones just makes it taste better. Plus, in the long run it's cheaper because you are using the spices and herbs, rather than spending $2.60 on a plastic cup of cumin and then shoving it into the back of your cupboard.

@ObtuseGoose: Pop Up Video was strangely educational.

@nytmare: Salt can preserve foods, so I'd think that it doesn't really expire. I wonder if could start to taste a little off, though? Can you go taste it and find out? ;)

That "SOOOO" makes me glad the manager blew her off.

Why don't they just put expiration dates on them?

Or at least "packaged on" dates. They'd sell more spices.

@nytmare: @DrGirlfriend:

Salt is a mineral, not a spice, and so has a different expiration than spices. I'm not certain if it has one.

I just checked a large container of cinnamon I bought about 2-3 years ago, and it was made in 1999... :(

@clodia: Important distinction, which I feel silly not having caught before!

@DrGirlfriend:

I know, you keep it in with the spices, in a spice jar - I had to sit and think for a second before I remembered the truth!

@nytmare: Salt doesn't expire in the same way that spices do. Salt is a non-volatile crystalline chemical. Spices age out because their volatile oils and flavor compounds break down. You should try to store them in a cool, dark place (say, a cabinet versus an exposed spice rack).

Fun Tip! If your old salt starts to cake in the shaker, add some grains of white rice. These absorb the mosture that makes the salt clump. At least, that's my understanding of how it works.

@DrGirlfriend: Salt is technically not a spice. It is a mineral. Its taste and flavor-enhancing properties do not go stale or spoil. Spices and dried herbs go stale because the essential oils dissipate and take the power of their flavor with them. Since salt has no essential oils to dissipate, the 6-month rule does not apply to salt.

However, your salt could easily become contaminated with other substances that would make it taste "off." This would not be a function of time, however. It would be a function of things to which your salt is exposed. Personally, I cook with salt frequently enough that I have never had to worry about flavor contamination.

Pumpkin pie flavored with old spice does not taste good. I know from personal experience.

Please get your spices from Penzey's. Doing otherwise makes the baby Jesus cry.

@smelendez: The two I just pulled out of my pantry have "Best By" dates. I estimate I purchased them about 18 months ago, and they both have 2009 dates.

@B:

Pumpkin pie flavored with old spice does not taste good. I know from personal experience

You must have used the deodorant. The Old Spice cologne tastes great in pie, but something the deodorant adds on "off" flavor.

@B: old spice or Old Spice?

@Troy F.: I am beaten again...

@liquisoft: You must spend hundreds per year on spices just to not cook : -)

A few months after we joined Sam's Club several years ago, my wife went on a spree and bought these giant quart tubs of several spices, some familiar (oregano, garlic powder) and not so familiar. She was so proud, thinking we'd be saving tens, maybe hundreds, of dollars over time. I didn't have the heart to tell her we'd never use it all up before it went blah-blah and she basically wasted a bunch of money. She was never an Emeril in the kitchen (her family's idea of good spaghetti was a chunk of Velveeta melted into Campbell's tomato soup, one of several recipes she brought into our home) and her complete and utter refusal to plan meals ahead of time (as well as her anger at me when I make a suggestion) is the only thing we really argue about, which isn't very often. And those spices? I threw them out and told her the cabinet shelf broke. And yes, I do all the shopping now.

@ElizabethD: I don't know where you live, but it is possible to buy bulk spices at more health/eco-conscious stores. True story: On Monday i was making spiced wine and managed to score 2 cinnamon sticks ($0.06) and a good sized bag of organic cloves ($0.32). They were cheap, fresh, no leftover stuff that I won't use, and, best of all, I had some fanstastic gluehwein. Try a PCC (seattle-area) or a Whole Foods/Wild Oats type place.

My mom just cleaned out our spice cabinet. There was stuff in there she had from the 70s. You can sell the bottles and tins on ebay. Eh. It's fine. Just use a little more.

I work at a place that sells herbs and spices in bulk and love to cook. After having to bring my own to my in-laws to get any decent flavor for holidays meals (somehow I'm always the one cooking even though it's not my house), I decided to upgrade my mother-in-law's spice collection. I brought small jars hand-filled with 10 different common ones, and to prove a point, had her smell each one, and her old jar of the equivalent. The difference was astonishing even to me. Though she probably won't use them on her own, at least for the next 6mo-year, I won't have to cart along my own herb jars. BTW, the project cost me 95 cents per jar, plus around $5 for all of the spices. Not bad for $15 total.

@bunnymen: They are no longer in Baltimore, they are in Hunt Valley. So Hunt Valley smells like pepper now.

@retzer: You didn't do a test drive on her cooking before marrying her? I would do a trade in if I were you.

@tph: I love Penzey's spices - always quality products, and the catalogs are full of information on the spices, as well as a few recipes.

@Troy F.: Thank you so much for that much-needed laugh! I'll be sure to avoid using Old Spice in my baked goods from now on.

so what, my mom probably has stuff in her spice rack that's older than I am. I know they have booze older than me.

@retzer: Thank you for making me laugh so hard that I'm in tears. I'm going to save that comment away for a rainy day... velveeta and tomato soup indeed... oh no, there I go again! :D

Anyone in the Boston area looking for loose spice (rather than little plastic containers) can try either Harvest Co-Op or Christina's Spices, both in Cambridge. Or, if you absolutely must have those little containers, CVS sometimes sells theirs for 99 cents each.

@mconfoy: I work in Hunt Valley (not at McCormick), and I definitely say that the area does not smell like pepper. It smells like garlic.

@nytmare: Salt isn't technically a spice. Its a rock. It won't go bad unless it gets wet :)

@tph: You are so right. Penzey's is teh bomb. Their prices are way better than grocery stores and you know the stuff is truly fresh. I'm blessed enough to have a retail store here in Saint Louis that I can go in and ogle all of the little lovelies whenever I want to, but they also have an okay e-commerce site and grandma can mail-order if she wants.
Not only is their quality top, you can buy spices in very small quantities (for those who don't cook much) all the way to huge "I own a restaurant" quantities. Also for the folks who don't cook much, and don't need a jar each of a dozen herbs to make an Italian/whatever style dinner, there are salt-free herb blends such as Boquet Garni and Herbes de Provence; and for the non-bakers who like pies and such over the holidays they have spice blends such as Pumpkin Pie Spice or Cake Spice....
(now I'm drooling. Time to make dinner.)

My dad nursed along a jar of red pepper flakes for over a dozen years. He absolutely refused to replace them and everyone else refused used a different jar. He claimed that they improved with age. My mom later admitted to me that she "updated" his pepper flakes on a regular basis. Maybe there is something to having fresh spices on hand after all.

And since you mentioned it, pre-ground nutmeg is pretty much worthless for the nutmeg flavor. the volatile oils are gone super quick after nutmeg is ground, so buy them whole and grate them yourself. You will be amazed in the difference.

I live near that Superfresh and occasionally shop there. The manager was being deceptive - it's been a superfresh for the last year, before that it was another local chain called 'Clemens', which had been in that location for well over 10 years.

While they did close for a few days for the changeover, I have a really hard time believing they actually got rid of all of Clemens stock when they bought the store.

So, it looks like if McCormick really wants to promote freshness, they need to start putting dates on the jars. But then, what will the supermarkets do with all the out of date stuff?

That SuperFresh was a Clemens market before last year so I guess SuperFresh bought whatever was on their shelves before moving in.
Honestly, it's probably all a marketing scam. I have spices that are over 10 years old and I think they are fine. Then again, i'm by no means a professional chef.

@tph: I was just going to recommend Penzeys myself. They rock, and you can get most spices in a wide variety of package sizes, including envelopes/bags to refill your glass jars. I've ordered from the website and also visited their Arlington, MA location--nirvana. Prices very competitive, too. I needed a vanilla bean for a recipe last year. McCormick in the grocery was $15!! At Penzeys, three of their best quality vanilla beans in a screwtop glass tube is about $7.

Lmao. Thanks to that site, I was finally able to go through my mother's spices, some of which dated back to the early 80's XD Needless to say, there is a LOT more room on her spice rack, I discarded of about 31 different expired spices all dated 2002 or prior, leaving maybe 11 *good* bottles up there, two of which are expired but she just bought them and can't stand the thought that they are already 2 years' expired.

I also went through her seasonings and found some packages so old they had either come open, or are now discontinued (and expired).

Thanks for this post, Chris!

Next question - She wants to recycle the bottles for arts and crafts or something, and had me put all the herbs in a gallon freezerbag (which is now full)...anyone got an eco-friendly idea I can do with these expired spices? If I put them in the garden for example, would they help or harm the soil balance?

I think you should spread them outside and see if you get any poppy plants or celery plants....

Lol..maybe celery but not poppy, didn't discard any of that. Did have 2 20 year old containers of celery seed though :P

If your store has one, I recommend checking the Hispanic section of your supermarket if it has one. Shoppers Food Warehouse here in DC carries a brand called La Flor [www.laflor.com] which are about one third the price of McCormick and the bottles have a human-readable expiration date.