AACCCK! Fridge door not closed tight-Food Lost?

18 years ago

I came downstairs just now to find that my DGS who was helping himself to some juice from the fridge last night, didn't close the drawer and the door was ajar! After the kids left last night we were over at a neighbor's house and I never re-entered the kitchen until 5 mins ago. The temp in the fridge is 60 degrees! I had an uncooked brisket that I'm going to make tonight and some cooked chicken breasts left over from Sat night's dinner party that were going to be used for lunches this week.

What do I toss? Milk? chicken? do I toss or keep the brisket? eggs? yogurt?

It was more than 12 hours since it was at the right temperature. The house was in the high 70's thanks to the a/c.

Help!

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Comments (12)

san_
18 years ago
ellen--toss your brisket and the cooked chicken too! i went to a USDA site and if you scroll down towards the bottom of the page, there's a whole list of stuff. sorry, madam!

Here is a link that might be useful: emergencies and food safety
lindac
18 years ago
The uncooked beef will be fine abd so will the milk, yoghurt etc...but toss that chicken.
Linda C
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wizardnm
18 years ago
I was thinking the same as Linda.

Nancy
Lars
18 years ago
Was your kitchen any cooler?? It's been over 80Â° in mine - I only have A/C in the living room. It's not supposed to be this hot in Venice!! I have a fan in the laundry room aimed toward the kitchen to give me a breeze, but it's still too hot, and we've been barbecuing.

I also would only throw out the chicken. I would cook the beef right away, however, and outside!

I get upset (just a bit) when DB gets ice from the freezer while keeping the freezer door open. I tried to teach him to take the bin out, close the door, fill his glass, and then return the bin, or add ice from the trays, if needed. Lately, some of the ice has been melting in the trays and bins, due to the heat in the kitchen.

Lars
compumom
Original Author
18 years ago
Okay, I'm back now. I'll sadly toss the chicken and the milk. The brisket will most likely be tossed, sad to say it's too hot outside for me to stand next to the grill and smoke it, which was the original plan. At 111 degrees (no I've never seen the backyard that hot in 30 years!)I'll be damned if I'm going to fuss with smoking that brisket! Perhaps later tonight I'll bake it and freeze for next week. sigh...

Lars, I know it's hot all over. My MIL lives in West Hollywood and yesterday noon it was hotter there than out here in the valley! To make matters worse her a/c units quit in May and she kept thinking she could get by w/o them! Luckily her condo bldg is well a/conditioned so she can open the doors to the hall and get some cool air. She's agreed to replace them, but of course try and get something installed at this time when they have all the repair work they want!
Our home doesn't get too hot as we have programmable thermostats that keep things cool (but appropriate) day and night. That's why the kitchen was never too warm. September's power bill is always a shocker!

I'm going to stick a chicken on the new rotisserie and give it a whirl. If it doesn't work out, I've got new chicken breasts to throw on the grill!
lakeguy35
18 years ago
Sorry to hear this Ellen. I'd keep the brisket and do it in a slow oven for 5 - 6 hours, it should be fine. I'd toss the milk and chicken too. I'm thinking everything else should be fine depending.

David
Lars
18 years ago
It was 94Â° here today, which doesn't sound so bad compared to 111Â°, but we just stayed in the air conditioned living room. We're having cold cuts for dinner - nothing warm! I would not want to barbeque in your heat either - I forgot how hot it is outside where you are. It's down to 85Â° now at almost 6:00 pm, but that's the hottest I've ever known it to be here at this time. We have a slight breeze outside, but that doesn't help the inside of the house.

Lars
compumom
Original Author
18 years ago
Well we ended up doing the breasts on the grill. It was a bit chaotic here and it was the best I can do. Tomorrow I'll try to rotisserie the chicken. Meanwhile it's marinating in some combo of vinegar, paprika, garlic, oil and s&P. Whatever, it's too hot and I'm too bothered to care!
sheshebop
18 years ago
Oh Ellen, that is so frustrating! I have had similar things happen. At the price of meat, it is truly aggravating. Glad you threw the chicken out. I might have tried to save the beef, but I guess it is better to be safe than sorry. It has been an unbearably hot summer, at least here. Hope we get some autumn weather soon.
Sherry
mustangs81
18 years ago
That's frustrating. In my house it would be an "oh well" situation only because it was the DGS who did the deed. I'm sure in yours too.

I recently had to chastize myself harshley because I left the refrigerated bags of groceries in the pantry overnight (12 hours). I kept saying perhaps it would be okay because there was a large bag of frozen meatballs to keep the other items somewhat cool. I cooked the meatballs in sauce and, of course, watched DH eat them first. I threw out the sausage and ricotta. Everything else seemed to survive.
User
18 years ago
Ellen what a bummer.....

I can understand not wanting to cook the brisket in that heat you are having. Is there a food kitchen for the poor nearby? Giving it to them is better than pitching it.
compumom
Original Author
18 years ago
Good idea Sharon, I'll call and see if they'll accept it. Everyone seems to be wary of accepting food donations!

AACCCK! Fridge door not closed tight-Food Lost?

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AACCCK! Fridge door not closed tight-Food Lost?

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