They have all been in this position: You are standing in front of the fridge holding a taper with leftover food and you wonder: how long has it been in the fridge? Is it still good?
Then you are called to make a decision: to throw it away even though it is one of your favorite foods or to eat it by praying first? So how do you know when a food is safe to eat?
Regardless of the type of food you leave in your fridge, it is safe to keep it in the fridge for only four days. "We all like to put food in the fridge in the fridge, as if to give them an extension of life," says Jennifer McEntire, Ph.D. your food ", she adds.
So, if we assume that your refrigerator has the right temperature (2-5 degrees Celsius), McEntire emphasizes that within four days the food must be consumed. But if you cook the food for a whole week, then put the meals of the second half of the week in the freezer and thaw them, only when you are going to eat them.
Follow these tips to make sure you follow the rules of hygiene.
Do not leave food on the kitchen counter
You've just cooked a huge soup pot, so you need enough time to cool down and then put it in the fridge, right? No.
If food is at room temperature for more than two hours, it is quite susceptible to bacteria that you should not eat. Divide the soup or whatever you have cooked in different tapas and put it in the fridge, even if it is hot.
This also applies to the lunch you take at work. Even if it is sealed in a very good quality taper, leaving it out of the fridge, it is not healthy.
Size matters (and small is better)
McEntire recommends the use of small storage containers. The smaller the taper, the faster the food cools. So prefer small and practical tapas.
Do not use containers
It is tempting to use that yogurt cup you got from the supermarket to put leftovers, but these types of containers do not hold food as well as the glass or plastic used for this job.
If you are going to reheat food, raise the temperature
When you need to reheat your food, the temperature should be above 70 degrees Celsius to be sure that the microorganisms that may have grown during storage have been destroyed.
If you are going to consume a small amount, do not heat it all, but only the portion you want. This is because defrosting and reheating food is safe to do only once.
In any case, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems are at risk of bacteria in food, so it is advisable to use a thermometer to measure the temperature of food during cooking and storage.