1. Have the cook use ingredients that are due to expiry first.
2. Limit the cook to use ingredients that are within a certain definable radius of the stove.
The Corn harvest has just come in and my freezer is full, but it is alright because the Corn will last 60 days in a regular room like the kitchen. However, I still have a few stacks of Berries and Rice lying around, but never being used because I've got a stack of Corn closer to the stove which takes priority. If my cook could simply choose the ingredients with the earliest 'best before date' that would be great, provided he didn't go stomping half way across the map to pick up a crate of berries that got left behind.
You can already do #2. Just alter the ingredient radius in the bill.
@ReZpawner - Thanks, I didn't know that was an option.
And while you can't go by expiry date you CAN make 2 bills like so:
1) Make up to 20 simple meals, use only berries, from up to 30 tiles away.
2) Make up to 20 simple meals, using any ingredients, from up to 30 tiles away.
This will cause your cook to use up the berries first, and then make up the rest of the 20 meals from any ingredients. It will NOT make 40 meals, if you're worried about that.