Although spoilage may be minimal, expiration dates are used on such products as spiral ham to ensure quality and reliability of the meat. Most spiral hams have a seven-to-10 day use by date on the expiration date label.
Generally, you boil potatoes when you plan to mash them or toss them into a salad, though boiled potatoes can also make a quick side dish. Boiling also cooks potatoes very evenly all the way through and usually only takes 10 to 20 minutes.
1 Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain. Return potatoes to pot and mash roughly; these are not meant to be the consistency of regular mashed potatoes.  Add butter and mix well with potatoes.