I cooked a vegetable soup last night and forgot to put it away in the fridge. It's been sitting in a pot all night. If I reheat it, bringing it to a boil, is it still safe to eat?
9 Comments
TheWimpyVegetarianFebruary 17, 2011
You're probably fine with the advice above about boiling, but if you've ever had food poisoning like drbabs you'll probably take the safest path of throwing it out. it's just not worth taking the chance. I landed in the ER with food poisoning a number of years ago, which likely came from a contaminated rare burger I had in a questionable restaurant. I don't think I've ever been that sick in my life. So now I do what drbabs does - b/c I don't ever want to go through that again. And besides the misery, a trip to the ER is always going to be more expensive than re-making a vegetable soup.
wssmomFebruary 16, 2011
My mother always told me, "When in doubt, throw it out."
And, I'm still alive.
:)
And, I'm still alive.
:)
drbabsFebruary 16, 2011
I'm not a food scientist, but I have had food poisoning. (self inflicted. let the beef stew cool too long before refrigerating. really awful. seriously dreadfully awful.) Here's what the USDA says, "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." So, you're right, you can kill the bacteria. But you can't remove the toxins, and it's the toxins that can make you wish you were dead. There's no way to know if there are toxins present. I've done the same thing and had to throw out what seemed like perfectly good chicken stock. But I never (ever) want to get food poisoning again.
ellenlFebruary 16, 2011
unless it's very, very warm where you are it's fine.
spiffypawsFebruary 15, 2011
If you cook 10 minutes at 160F or above, you'll kill all bacteria. I've done this more times than I want to admit, and I'm still alive.
lemontartFebruary 15, 2011
The food scientists on here will say, toss it, but I think if you boil it for 10 minutes it should be fine.
hardlikearmourFebruary 15, 2011
If you used chicken stock or other meat stock to make it, I'd get rid of it. If it's vegetarian it is likely to be fine.
pierinoFebruary 15, 2011
A vegetable soup should still be fine as long as you held it covered. If it were seafood I wouldn't take the chance.
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