What to toss?

So my fridge was left open last night (somebody didn't close the crisper drawer and I didn't think to double check) and as I went to get some cream I noticed that everything is room temperature. I am tossing the dairy, eggs, meat and poultry (so sad). Do I have to part with a dairy-free version of the Warm Orzo Salad with Beets and Greens? What else should I get rid of?

Kristy Mucci
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5 Comments

Kristy M.
Kristy M. August 30, 2011
Thanks for the helpful answers, everyone!
 
ChefJune
ChefJune August 30, 2011
I'd think the main items that would be in danger of making you sick would be the leftover prepared foods. Also raw fish and meat. So sorry.
 
Greenstuff
Greenstuff August 30, 2011
Eggs are also okay. I once went on a 3-week wilderness trip, provisioned by a highly reputable outfitter. Our eggs were not in a cooler, but in a box.
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames August 30, 2011
Salad dressings full of vinegar or lemon juice, and all fruits and veggies should be fine. Most condiments should be okay. I would think that many hard cheeses, especially Parmigiano and similar, would be fine. As would yogurt. (After all, the people who've been eating cultured products for several thousand years have for nearly all of that time been doing so without refrigerators.) Cured meats like prosciutto should also be okay, especially if kept in a meat drawer. Wheat germ and any grains or cornmeal that you keep in the fridge should be fine. ;o)
 
boulangere
boulangere August 30, 2011
Sadly, basically anything (with the exception of butter, for example) that has been at 41 degrees or higher for longer than 4 hours. I'm so sorry!
 
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