Hey mamas!
So, I discovered a bottle of unopened cooking oil (vegetable/olive oil blend) in the back of my pantry with a Best By date of March 2007! I shudder to think what this says about my organizing/cleaning skills. :)
It's not rancid, in fact, before I realized the date I actually used it to make muffins that turned out quite delicious and not at all poisonous. Yet. However, now that I know that it's 5 freakin' years past awesome I'd rather not use any more of it. I want to get rid of it but need to recycle the bottle. I know better than to put used cooking oil down a drain, but what do I do with unused? I can't think of any other container or way to separate the oil from the bottle. Do I take unused oil to a recycling place? Heading out there with 2 or 3 cups worth seems a little excessive but maybe it's the only way to go!
Who's got other ideas?
While I was researching and reading your wonderful suggestions, DH took the bottle outside, dumped the remainder in some dirt, washed out the bottle and tossed it in the recycle bin!
I always dump cooking oil into an extra plastic bag and just throw it away. Then you can recycle the container.
i dont think oil goes bad.... but by law there has to be an expiration date on everything!
We live in a rural town with a transfer station - they sort and transfer it to a dump. They also recycle lots and lots. We just dropped of 4 gallons of cooking oil from an outdoor fryolator, which they will recycle.
Check town hall for locale recycling.
I just put a bottle of rancid cooking oil in the trash. It won't hurt to not recycle one bottle.
Get a large bowl, pour the cooking oil in it, put some dawn or other dish washing liquid in it, add some hot/warm water, stir it, let it sit then pour it down the drain. The hot soapy water will dissolve the oily liquid and cause it to not clog your drain or piping system. You can add some distilled white vinegar in it as well if you want. Hope that helps
Behind most restaurants, there is a waste oil container, generally a black or dark color and looking quite messy. You could ask to add to it, and I'm sure they wouldn't care. The way I handle the same situation in my house is to go ahead and skip recycling that time, trying to do something good for the earth to make up for it, and just put the sealed thing in the trash. There are also craft projects/recipes for making food for wildlife with kitchen ingredients, and you could find one for your oil.
This might seem kind of strange, but we've put old oil (what we've used to cook with) along the side of our sidewalk where we don't want grass to grow. Not sure it's really "killed" a lot of it, but I think it's helped. Plus, it might smell like oil when you walk out your front door for a few days. :)
We have a diesel truck - so any and all cups of cooking oil (used), we strain thru two coffee filters, then pour the oil into the fuel tanks. It is useable as fuel and helps lubricate everything. Our mechanic even has said "kudos" to us for helping keep things lubricated by doing this.
If you don't have a diesel, why not just trash it? One bottle not recycled won't be the end of the earth.
Well, sounds like you have resolved the problem.
Are you in the Kansas City area? A friend and her husband are in the Martin City area (south KC) and just started a company that recycles cooking oil from restaurants, cleverly named, "Fry, Fry Again." They would have been happy to take your oil.
Just thought you'd want to know that there are businesses like this out there!
I'd use it instead of throwing it out.
It's considered hazardous waste... I know it seems extreme, but you are supposed to take it to a HHW facility (household hazardous waste). However, I personally soak up my oil with paper towels and throw it in the trash.
