FORGOTTEN IN THE FRIDGE Suppose you're 40 years old and a friend sends you a birthday card suggesting you needn't feel old; after all, that friend has things in the back of the refrigerator older than you! Worth a smile? Very likely. But when you're confronting that suspect food container that got forgotten in the fridge, lost behind the olives and mayonnaise, a feeling of foreboding may arise. Then you ask: ---When it is time to say farewell to refrigerated foods? ---How long before you leave your leftovers? An elderly gentleman living by himself once said he used this guideline: "I toss a food when I don't know what it is anymore!" "Is this how they discovered penicillin?" mused a parent after seeing (and smelling!) her offspring's sadly neglected refrigerator. We all know slimy, smelly food may signal bacterial spoilage, but refrigerated food can be unsafe before it reaches that stage. One particular area of concern is the tendency many of us have to hang onto meat and poultry products that we purchased but didn't get around to preparing. Or perhaps we prepared more of the food than we used. There it sits -- for how long? How can you tell when it's time to toss? Complicating the situation is the fact that if food is mishandled, bacteria can grow and cause a food-borne illness even if the food is used within what we normally consider a safe time period. Mishandling can occur in many ways, including: COOKING TEMPERATURE. Raw meat and poultry should always be cooked to a safe internal temperature. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends the following internal temperatures (Kitchen Thermometers, October 1997). Cook ground meats to 160 degrees Fahrenheit (F); ground poultry to 165 F. Beef, veal and lamb steaks and roasts may be cooked to 145 F if they have never been pierced in any way during slaughter, processing or preparation; otherwise, cook to 160 F. Cook all cuts of fresh pork to 160 F. Whole poultry should reach 180 F in the thigh; 170 F in the breast. NOTE: When reheating leftovers, reheat thoroughly to a temperature of 165 F or until hot and steaming. Soups and gravies should be brought to a rolling boil. HOLDING TEMPERATURE. Bacteria that can cause food-borne illness grow rapidly at room temperature. Never keep a food at room temperature over two hours (one hour in temperatures above 90 F). The two hour limit includes preparation time as well as serving time. COOLING PROCEDURE. Improper cooling is one of the major causes of food-borne illness. For rapid cooling, place foods into shallow containers and refrigerate promptly. Slice large pieces of meat and poultry before refrigerating. For thicker foods - such as stews, hot puddings and layers of meat slices -- limit food depth to 2 inches. CROSS-CONTAMINATION. Avoid cross-contamination where bacteria is transferred from one food to another through a shared surface. Store packages of raw meat and poultry on plates on the lower shelf of your refrigerator to prevent their juices from dripping onto other foods. REFRIGERATOR TEMPERATURE. A temperature of 40 F or lower should be maintained in the refrigerator to help slow food spoilage and bacterial growth. Use an appliance thermometer to assure that the refrigerator temperature is between 34 to 41 F. Following are some general guidelines USDA provides on how long you can safely keep common meat and poultry products in your refrigerator. For longer storage, many of these foods can be frozen. For further information about safe food storage, including freezer storage, call the local Environmental Health Specialist at your County Health Department. MEAT AND POULTRY PRODUCTS REFRIGERATOR STORAGE CHART =============================================================== FOOD STORAGE TIME IN REFRIGERATON (at 41 degrees Fahrenheit) NOTE: Purchase the product before "sell-by" or expiration dates. Follow handling recommendations on the product. Keep meat and poultry in its package in the refrigerator until just before using. The following are general refrigerator storage recommendations from USDA (Basics for Handling Food Safely, September 1997) for selected meat and poultry products. Many companies list a toll-free number on the package of meat or poultry you can call if you have specific questions about that product. ===============================================================EGGS Eggs, fresh in shell 3 weeks Eggs, in shell, hard-cooked 1 week ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- MAYONNAISE Mayonnaise, commercial, opened 2 months ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- RAW HAMBURGER, GROUND and STEW MEAT Hamburger & stew meats 1 to 2 days Ground turkey, veal, pork, lamb & mixtures of them 1 to 2 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- HAM Ham, canned, labeled "Keep Refrigerated", opened 3 to 5 days Ham, fully cooked, whole 7 days Ham, fully cooked, half 3 to 5 days Ham, fully cooked, slices 3 to 4 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOT DOGS and LUNCH MEATS Hot dogs, opened package 1 week Lunch meats, opened package 3 to 5 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- BACON and SAUSAGE Bacon 7 days Sausage, raw from pork, beef, chicken or turkey 1 to 2 days Smoked breakfast links, patties 7 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- FRESH MEAT (BEEF, VEAL, LAMB and PORK) Steaks 3 to 5 days Chops 3 to 5 days Roasts 3 to 5 days Variety meats (tongue, kidneys, liver, heart, chitterlings) 1 to 2 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- MEAT LEFTOVERS Cooked meat and meat dishes 3 to 4 days Gravy and meat broth 1 to 2 days ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- FRESH POULTRY Chicken or turkey, whole 1 to 2 days Chicken or turkey, parts 1 to 2 days Giblets 1 to 2 days ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- COOKED POULTRY, LEFTOVER Fried chicken 3 to 4 days Cooked poultry dishes 3 to 4 days Pieces, plain 3 to 4 days Pieces covered with broth, gravy 1 to 2 days Chicken nuggets, patties 1 to 2 days ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- This has been adapted, in part, from the April, 1998 edition of the monthly Foodtalk newsletter published by the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension Service. |
