Re heated rice

The only time I've ever had food poisoning was at an all-inclusive hotel in Majorca. There was an outbreak of salmonella and I had it but my friend didn't. I blamed the rice as it was the only difference in what we had had to eat.

People in the far east reheat rice by frying it in a hot wok. They have been doing this since before refridgeration. I ate a lot of fried rice in Thailand (including in places with no refridgeration) and never had a problem. I think the temperature you reheat it to and the thoroughness of the reheating are what make the difference. People for whom rice is a staple have clearly sorted this out long since.

Which is not to deny that cooked rice can be risky if it is not subjected to the right treatment. But that applies to most already cooked and reheated foods.

The same as K8tie, I always cook extra rice and freeze it in zip lock baggies. I Reheat it thoroughly and have never experienced any problems. Perhaps some of the illnesses pertaining to rice could be attributed to contaminated water used for cooking, especially in foreign countries, where your stomach is not used to all the little "bugs" that don't seem to bother someone born and raised there. This is actually the first time I've ever heard that reheated rice can make a person sick. Good to know.

Chrissy..its not me eating rice that I'm worried about but my one year old granddaughter. She had a bad tummy last week and I was concerned that it was something she ate.

Many years ago I used to teach food hygeine to caterers - ive forgotten the detail but i know all the text books said NEVER reheat cooked rice as it can cause botulism which is very serious involving paralysis. Same toxin as botox which paralyses facial muscles. Having saidthat i do heat Rice in ready prepared meals occasionally as i assume they have been treated so as to be safe.

Sorry rice not rise

Don't think I would fancy reheated takeaway of anything. But I have always reheated rise, cool quickly after cooking, put in the fridge and reheat thoroughly next day, sometimes I make double quantity and do egg fried rice with it.

Hi Welshwife, my son lives in Japan and they use their rice cooker same as your Thai family. I was horrified at first but having spent 7 weeks eating rice this way lasy year with no I'll effects I am a little less fussy but do always chill overnight at home

I enjoy M&S microwavable meals wiith riice. Theyre in store refrigereated and go straight into the fridge or freezer before use. Also buy their Basmati rìce which I enjoy wirh fish or cooked chicken insteac of veggies or oven french fries.
Presume this is safe ?

I had my worst-ever bout of food poisoning after eating re-heated rice (not re-heated by me), had environmental health officer involved; please don't risk it.

Oh I've just noticed Immiesnana's reply, so she's said it could be affected by Bacillus cereus toxins

I will never re-heat rice. As I once did a food hygiene course and this was the one food we were told we should never re-heat, because of the bacteria that arises from doing same. Something about spores. I cant find literature now but that is what I remember. If I ever have any left over I just eat it cold.

I do use leftover rice, but I cool it immediately by putting it in a seive and rinsing it with cold water then straight in to the fridge.

Louizalass you are spot on. I am an Environmental Health Officer so I know what I'm talking about. It never fails to amaze me how many people say about any poor hygiene practice " I've done this for years and not been ill so it must be OK". No! It just means that you have been lucky and/or are less susceptible to such bacterial toxins. Children, the chronically sick and the elderly may be affected badly by Bacillus cereus toxins.

If you cook your own rice and want to eat it later, cool it quickly ( less than an hour) and refrigerate. Either use cold in a salad which is not then left at room temperature or reheat above 75 degrees C and eat straight away. Either way use within 24 hours.If you have left over rice from a take away throw it away. You cannot know whether the rice has already been reheated so it is not worth the risk. I would only give freshly cooked rice to a child.

Tegan, you say in your post 'having re heated rice for many years before I read an article saying not to' - if you were doing it for many years without any ill effects is it really a problem? Just asking.

I never used to eat re heated rice, however my Taiwanese Dil always uses the left over rice for fried rice the following day. She always cools and refrigerates (or freezes it) on the same day. She has cooked fried rice many many times for us on her visits to England. It is truly delicious and I now do the same myself, everyone in the family from 2 year old upwards love it and not one of them has suffered any ill effects,

We never have any left over rice as the dogs love it. It is so easy to cook from fresh with our microwave rice cooker and with forum reporting people being ill it is not worth the risk

My husband, who used to be a Chef in the Royal Navy, says you should never reheat rice. I looked at the Government national food archives and it says: A. It's true that you could get food poisoning from eating reheated rice. But it's not actually the reheating that's the problem – it's the way the rice has been stored before reheating.

"Uncooked rice can contain spores of bacteria that can cause food poisoning. When the rice is cooked, the spores can survive. Then, if the rice is left standing at room temperature, the spores will multiply and may produce poisons that cause vomiting or diarrhoea. Reheating the rice won't get rid of these poisons.

So, the longer cooked rice is left at room temperature, the more likely it is that poisons produced could stop the rice being safe to eat.

It's best to serve rice when it has just been cooked. If that isn't possible, cool the rice as quickly as possible (ideally within one hour) and keep it in the fridge for no more than one day until reheating."

I never knew about the danger of re heating rice, so I've certainly learned something from you all today. Thank you.

Before I got married, a friend and I ate at a very upmarket Chinese restaurant in the West End of London. We were both really ill afterward and the doctor said it was probably the chicken we had both had, but no-one thought about the rice. Who knows, perhaps it was that?

A friend of mine ate reheated rice, (from a takeaway the night before) she was ill for two days after. Do so at your own risk!

There is a type of starch called "resistant starch" which is " "a type of starch that is not digested in the stomach or small intestine, reaching the colon intact. Thus, it “resists” digestion. This explains why we do not see spikes in either blood glucose or insulin after eating RS, and why we do not obtain significant calories from RS."
There are 4 types it seems and rice is one of these.
"RS Type 3: Also called retrograde RS since this type of RS forms after Type 1 or Type 2 RS is cooked and then cooled. These cooked and cooled foods can be reheated at low temperatures, less than 130 degrees and maintain the benefits of RS (6). Heating at higher temperatures will again convert the starch into a form that is digestible to us rather than “feeding” our gut bacteria. Examples include cooked and cooled parboiled rice, cooked and cooled potatoes, and cooked and cooled properly prepared (soaked or sprouted) legumes."

I always cook more than I need [asda has a reasonable priced rice cooker] then I cool and freeze in little bags for use later. I too love fried rice with lots of end-of veggies lurking in the fridge, so these little bags are very handy.

For more info see the webpage re resistant starch.
chriskresser.com/how-resistant-starch-will-help-to-make-you-healthier-and-thinner/

never reheat it. give it to the dogs cold next morning. otherwise the chickens - but even they don't get it more than an overnighter.

The same with this lass Rob - I cannot understand how she eats so much and is as thin as a rake! When she stays with me she raids the fridge all the time so difficult to plan meals more than a couple of hours in advance!!!! She can eat a whole pack of fresh prawns followed by a full dinner about half an hour later!
Another little quirk is preferring to do her washing everyday by hand - she started off doing it in a bowl outside on the grass but then I managed to persuade her that my small bath inside the house was better for her.

I always cool quickly refrigerate overnight and microwave until very hot on a high setting that's for myself not too sure about serving it to a young child but at the end of the day it's up to the parents.