Is it safe to eat leftover food that was left out on the counter to cool at dinnertime, then forgotten until m

Answer 1

When in doubt, throw it out.

Answer 2

No. Bacteria exist everywhere in nature. They are in the soil, air, water, and the foods we eat. When they have nutrients (food), moisture, and favorable temperatures, they grow rapidly, increasing in numbers to the point where some types of bacteria can cause illness. Bacteria grow most rapidly in the range of temperatures between 40 and 140 °F, some doubling in number in as little as 20 minutes. Some types will produce toxins that are not destroyed by cooking. Pathogenic bacteria do not generally affect the taste, smell, or appearance of a food. In other words, one cannot tell that a food has been mishandled or is dangerous to eat. For example, food that has been left too long on the counter may be dangerous to eat, but could smell and look fine. If a food has been left in the "Danger Zone" – between 40 and 140 °F – for more than 2 hours, discard it, even though it may look and smell good. Never taste a food to see if it is spoiled.

Answer 3

depends what it is seafood?get rid of it for sure in a kitchen situation food is chilled quickly in a blast chiller and refrigerated stored at a safe temp of5 degrees c or under the safe zone for hot food is 63 or above anything between is considered danger zone but thats in industry where we have to keep our asses covered or be closed down at home you can afford to be more flexible judge by what it is and how long its out and how warm the room is if it smells definately dump it

Answer 4

Depends what it was. If seafood or a custard, you are taking your chances. Throw it away. In fact, anytime you have doubts about the food, whether at home or away from home, throw it away. Your health is worth more; and there is always another meal around the corner. I'm serious.

Answer 5

Go for it! What doesn't kill you can only make you stronger!!! I've done it plenty of times and I've never been poisoned etc. However, I wouldn't recommend giving the food to vulnerable folk i.e. elderly, infirm or youngsters, but for a healthy adult it will be fine.

Answer 6

First, food should be cooled at room temp Before it is put away. I find no harm in it. I think it makes my body stronger to not be afriad of germs. I do it all the time!

Answer 7

best to pitch it if it didn't make it to the fridge that night. food safety rules state that food can only sit out for 2 hours without being heated/cooled to the proper temperature.

Answer 8

it depends on the temperature: you should definitely waste it when this happens in summer, at 35-40 degrees, but you can safely eat it in winter, when the room's temperature is considerably lower.

Answer 9

Hope the following information will be useful to you :


http://www.nsf.org/consumer/food_safety/food_handling.asp?program=FoodSaf

Answer 10

I would say yes but it depends what you left out.

Answer 11

YOu might want to smell it first, if the smell doesn't change, then it should be fine. But remember to heat it first.