Gransnet forums

Health

How long is danagerous - I failed to put a raw chicken in the fridge?

(104 Posts)
Jess20 Wed 25-Mar-20 16:13:07

I may have to change my name after this - I got a food delivery 3 days ago and thought I'd taken out the perishables and washed them etc but managed to miss a chicken and thought it had been left off the delivery. Finally clearing the box I found it. Room temp, 3 days, a tad whiffy but no not crawling, I washed it to be sure (bleached sink afterwards, rubber disposable gloves etc).

I am cooking it right now, and will do so very thoroughly. My family were farmers, my grandparents were farming way before anyone had a fridge and they would have cooked and eaten it.

I'm less worried about who would still eat it than how safe it is to eat.

We may all be making choices like this over the next few months, hopfully won't get food poisoning. Any microbiologists, food experts out there?

B9exchange Thu 26-Mar-20 14:09:01

Please don't give possibly dodgy food to animals, they can get ill just as easily. One of our cats got Salmonella, goodness knows how as we don't share food with them, but they are on a special raw food diet, must have been from that. I wouldn't recommend sharing a house with a cat with Salmonella!!!

Susan55 Thu 26-Mar-20 14:25:00

To be honest, I really wouldn't touch it myself and definitely wouldn't serve it to my family.

Barmeyoldbat Thu 26-Mar-20 14:36:42

I am very relaxed about food dates but in this case I would bin it.

Farmor15 Thu 26-Mar-20 15:34:07

I completely agree with TLVgran48 's post, quoting Timothy Sly, a food borne disease epidemiologist. Most people would not eat raw meat that smells a bit off, even after cooking, but much food poisoning is caused by cooked foods, contaminated after cooking, or kept at a lukewarm temperature too long.

I'm always a bit wary of the prepared salads in supermarkets, particularly potato, rice or pasta salads, as it's that type of product that is more risky than Jess's chicken!

Roses Thu 26-Mar-20 15:48:27

I have had salmonella twice and believe me you don't want to risk it.
To be honest I don't know how you could enjoy eating it knowing its history!
And please don't give it to the dog

Jess20 Thu 26-Mar-20 16:26:26

Thanks all, we survived. I think eating cooked food that's been left out of the fridge is often far more dangerous as you don't know how long it's been at what temperatue. By the time the chicken was cooked very thoroughly it was fine to eat, it wasn't left standing around warm. I wouldn't BBQ it, as someone suggested, as that cooks the outside to a crisp while the inside isn't cooked through properly. My dog wouldn't get anything that I thought was risky smile

Patsy429 Thu 26-Mar-20 16:30:59

Please, no, no, no. Don't cook it or eat it. It's been out of the fridge for too long.

Thecatshatontgemat Thu 26-Mar-20 16:35:37

Nope. Bin it now.

Sussexborn Thu 26-Mar-20 17:39:32

Years ago I ate something that caused food poisoning and it took weeks to recover so I wouldn’t risk it.

willa45 Thu 26-Mar-20 18:32:55

Your farmer predecessors likely raised their own chickens and knew what they ate and which ones were healthy.

Most of the chickens we buy today, are processed in multiple (wholesale) packers from many different places. We really have no way of knowing what they might have been exposed to. Raw chicken can harbor bacteria even if it's fresh. I hate to think what could grow in there after three days at room temperature!

Your family's health is worth much more than the cost of a chicken! Toss it.

Hetty58 Thu 26-Mar-20 18:35:09

Are you still alive Jess20? I really hope you were just winding us up!

MamaCaz Thu 26-Mar-20 18:53:45

DS1 got really ill just from handling some slightly whiffy chicken when on holiday in Portugal.

It had only been bought that days then put straight in the fridge, so he reckoned it would be ok if cooked well. Luckily, a friend came into the kitchen as CD was preparing it, noticed the smell and insisted that it should be thrown away.

When I say 'lucky', I mean that at least no one else in the group got ill, but DS became more ill than he has ever been in his life, taking weeks to recover (until then, he hadn't taken a single sick day in his twelve-year working career). He is a whole lot more careful now!

MamaCaz Thu 26-Mar-20 18:54:26

DS, not DS1!

MaizieD Thu 26-Mar-20 19:01:06

Of course you can give it to the dog. They're scavengers, for heaven's sake. Their digestive systems are designed to cope with dodgy food.

OTH, cats aren't scavengers, they like their food fresh. Don't give it to the cat (it probably wouldn't eat it, anyway).

jerseygirl Thu 26-Mar-20 19:15:10

Please dont risk it!! i've had food poisoning and i thought i was going to die. Its not worth the risk

Fatarse54 Thu 26-Mar-20 23:42:30

Please don't eat it, cooking will not kill all the bacteria, you don't want e_coli, campylorbactor or salmonella.

Flygirl Fri 27-Mar-20 00:21:49

My mum always said...
"If in doubt? Cast out"
There's your answer! ?

Joplin Fri 27-Mar-20 02:57:50

Annaram1 - how COULD you suggest giving it to the dog!! I hope to goodness you don't have a dog yourself if that's how you'd treat it. I'm horrified.

Joplin Fri 27-Mar-20 03:01:32

MaisieD - have you never seen a dog with an upset stomach after being given food that's "off"? I despair. Hope you don't have a dog either - they should be treated with more respect than that.

Oopsminty Fri 27-Mar-20 03:17:34

I certainly wouldn't feed it to man or beast

Some years ago, two of our dogs managed to get hold of some cooked chicken that had been in the bin and they were terribly ill

So I hope you wrapped it up well and secured it in the bin

allule Fri 27-Mar-20 13:37:09

Madmaggie......don't eat anything your cat wouldn't?
We'd be limited to one brand of tuna and chicken cat food! They'll steal ham or cheese given a chance, but don't eat it.

M0nica Fri 27-Mar-20 20:34:34

Well, my mother's cats used to scavenge cooked fish from the bins of the nearby care home. They would bring it into the house and eat it in the middle of the kitchen floor.

One day my mither got fed up, tok the fish from them and served it in their bowls for supper. They refused to eat it grin

Kittye Fri 27-Mar-20 20:44:00

Straight in the bin. No way I’d give it to a pet ?

Sparklefizz Fri 27-Mar-20 20:48:02

Is it really worth it - for the sake of wasting approx £10 - to possibly make yourself or a pet really ill?

Oopsadaisy3 Fri 27-Mar-20 20:58:25

You ate it??

God you are brave, I wouldn’t want to go to A and E with food poisoning at the moment.