Dear VB,
I was brought up thinking that if any food was left out after cooking for more than 4 hours, you needed to throw it away. If it got to be room temperature, it was doomed.
Then a friend of mine made a batch of black eyed peas for dinner, left them out over night sitting on the stove, and heated them up at lunch and ate them. I thought "She's doomed! Doesn't she know you can't leave food out for more than 4 hours? It'll kill you!"
I would love it if anyone had some kind of insight as to how long, or little, food can be left out without making you sick. I know if it smells bad, it's bad...
but there is the bacteria thing that I'm not sure about.
Another thing, I was also taught that leaving food in an opened can in the fridge can poison you. Like leftover soup or tomato sauce. I always leave it in the can, for at least a day, if I don't have a container to put it in, and have never keeled over from any kind of sickness. Has anyone else ever heard of this? Is it aluminum poisoning? How come we can eat food out of a can and not be poisoned, but if you open the can, it can mean sure death?
Sincerely,
Confused by food.
I was brought up thinking that if any food was left out after cooking for more than 4 hours, you needed to throw it away. If it got to be room temperature, it was doomed.
Then a friend of mine made a batch of black eyed peas for dinner, left them out over night sitting on the stove, and heated them up at lunch and ate them. I thought "She's doomed! Doesn't she know you can't leave food out for more than 4 hours? It'll kill you!"
I would love it if anyone had some kind of insight as to how long, or little, food can be left out without making you sick. I know if it smells bad, it's bad...
but there is the bacteria thing that I'm not sure about.Another thing, I was also taught that leaving food in an opened can in the fridge can poison you. Like leftover soup or tomato sauce. I always leave it in the can, for at least a day, if I don't have a container to put it in, and have never keeled over from any kind of sickness. Has anyone else ever heard of this? Is it aluminum poisoning? How come we can eat food out of a can and not be poisoned, but if you open the can, it can mean sure death?
Sincerely,
Confused by food.
