Reheating leftovers

I'll do 3 or 4 days for leftovers. If it is quickly packed up after dinner in sealed containers and put in the fridge right away then no issues.

I make soup on Sunday, and put into sealable bowls for lunch through the week. Usually 8 bowls, so 4 days for us.

When reheating food, you should ensure it reaches an internal temperature of at least 75°C (167°F). This ensures that any harmful bacteria are destroyed and the food is safe to eat. Reheating means cooking the food again, not just warming it up, and should be done thoroughly to ensure the entire dish is piping hot.

With rice, make sure it's cooled within 1 hour and then goes straight in the fridge or freezer. Rice kept in the fridge should be eaten within 24 hours. Never reheat rice more than once.

FranP

1. Never reheat rice unless you have a vacuum sealer and use it while rice is hot.
2. Depends how quickly you cool and put away, and how you store it, but use your eyes and nose. Except for pork products (2-3 days), most things will be OK for a week, although with cooked green items their flavour tends to go quite quickly.
3. Never store opened tins, especially with any tomato or fruit content, as this will "eat" the tin

Transfer the food to a covered container and ditch the tin/can.

1. Never reheat rice unless you have a vacuum sealer and use it while rice is hot.
2. Depends how quickly you cool and put away, and how you store it, but use your eyes and nose. Except for pork products (2-3 days), most things will be OK for a week, although with cooked green items their flavour tends to go quite quickly.
3. Never store opened tins, especially with any tomato or fruit content, as this will "eat" the tin

petra

cc
You’re not wrong there. I’ve had it twice from eating old rice.
The second time was in China where I was put on a drip.
And it was my birthday 😥

Rice can be very dodgy.

If it's left warm it can develop toxins. Reheating does not kill off the toxins.

If you intend to re-use cooked rice it should be rinsed after cooking in cold water and frozen quickly then reheated thoroughly.

Agree!

New to me nevet knew there was a rule???? I justput left overs in freezer and label it. Heat up in air fryer

cc
You’re not wrong there. I’ve had it twice from eating old rice.
The second time was in China where I was put on a drip.
And it was my birthday 😥

I do the same: eat it cold. Its the reheating part that scares me.

My husband actively looks forward to our "clear the fridge" meals where I try to make something interesting from all our left overs.

The only food that I am wary about reheating is rice as I understand that there is some toxin than can develop, so I usually just cook the amount that we need.
I apply the "smell" test to everything else, provided it looks OK.

I don’t have any rules if it looks and smells ok I eat it and I m still here

I remember my son when he was little asking me "Can you make some left overs please Mummy?" (Didn't occur to him not to eat everything on his plate!) because he liked bubble and squeak.
(He also listened to his plate the first time I served it and complained "It not weaking, Mummy!")
Waste not want not people here too.
I am vegetarian and my partner vegan so very little "danger" food here. Often use things past their sell by or even use by date. I have to be his eyes and nose though as he has no sense of smell and is colour blind!

AuntieE

I only ever re-heat food the day after it was originally made.

If I know I won't want to eat it the day after it has been made, I freeze it immediately. Otherwise, I re-heat it the day after and put it in the freezer once that is done.

How do you eat it then you have already-heated it, so ideally should not be re-heated again. At least I would not.

Unless it's a joint of meat (a rare occurrence) i seldom have anything left over for more than a day. A joint I would keep for three or four days. I've done a food hygiene course so anything I cook is cooled quickly and into the fridge. I use a thermometer when reheating.

My DD's cat will eat ANYTHING.

Seriously, though, I would use the "nose and eyes" test. DH has no sense of smell and doesn't care what food looks like so he often attempts to serve up week-old leftovers. This morning he was eating the remains of a carton of yoghurt opened two weeks earlier.

Unigran4

I use smell, sight and taste, as my mother and grandmother did. Mould comes off jam, and cheese. If an apple has a bad bruise I cut that out and eat the rest, but, then, I was brought up to "waste not, want not" and I'm pretty sure that my cast iron stomach can be accredited to the food poisoning bug that crept in occasionally, and my system fought off.

I once cut off what looked like mould from some cabbage.
I went down with food poisoning.
I thought, if I can get it from cabbage, I can get it from anything.

Two days is usually plenty for me to eat up the leftovers. DH won't eat leftovers unless in disguise, so I try to make the right amount (or double & freeze).

I use smell, sight and taste, as my mother and grandmother did. Mould comes off jam, and cheese. If an apple has a bad bruise I cut that out and eat the rest, but, then, I was brought up to "waste not, want not" and I'm pretty sure that my cast iron stomach can be accredited to the food poisoning bug that crept in occasionally, and my system fought off.

Allira

Using a meat thermometer is a good idea to make sure the reheated food has reached a high enough temperature.

I think I will get one of those.
Better to be on the safe side, for me.

It is still debatable, but I once had severe food poisoning. And I mean severe.
I have been more careful ever since.

I rarely have any leftovers, unless I have deliberately cooked enough for two days, or if I have made a batch of something, it is portioned up for the freezer.
Today is an exception. I made a cottage pie yesterday but I filled half my plate with green veg so only ate half the pie. I’ll be eating the rest today. My limit would be two days, though I might eat something without reheating (if suitable) on day 3.

When I have leftovers I usually eat it for lunch the next day or perhaps the day after. But my rule of thumb is it it smells and tastes ok it's fine. I rarely if ever get an upset stomach from something I have eaten. The only thing I don't do is freeze cooked meat if I had originally frozen it raw.

Leftovers? What are these things of which you speak?!

Gr! No I'll effects, not 9!

I happily will eat something that's been kept for up to and including 5 days. 9 ill effects!

After all I say to my OH I bet those fancy sandwiches in the chiller at So-and-So shop were probably made 2 weeks ago 😅

Prue Leith says she serves out if date food all the time and no one notices.