Left turkey out overnight, is it okay?
Replies
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It'll be fine ... You're going to cook it anyway ...0
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I'd eat it. I'd even *OH THE HORROR* feed it to my kid.
I will say that cooking it PROPERLY at this point is pretty important though . . . but that goes without saying.0 -
If it was cold in the refrigerator, then everyone would say it is fine.
If it is still cold on the counter, people freak out.
Does anyone else logic? If it's still cold, then of course it's just fine. If it got up to room temperature, then definitely no, but it didn't.
Seriously....
Tim - I'm actually quite involved in a commercial kitchen environment with supporting education to back up what I said. Yes, human nature tells you if it still feels cold that it's OK.
Science has proven that when it sits out at room temperature for more than 2 hours it can fester bacteria. I didn't make this up. Sorry. I also said it CAN not that it WILL! You would be surprised to know the food risks that are present when temperature is just a few degrees to high or too low.
Do whatever you want with the turkey.
Edited to add reference: http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/bloopers.html
THIS!! I am a chef - do NOT eat that turkey! Any of you who thaw it on the countertop or in water are lucky as hell you have never gotten sick. My only guess as to why is because you likely overcook your bird as well. The only safe way to thaw something as large as a turkey is in the refrigerator for 2-4 days, then it must cook to a temperature of 165 (after resting for at least 20 minutes). Invest in an instant read thermometer and the time needed to thaw the bird properly.
Oh there is sooo much more on this, but I'll stop there.
You are correct. I have been leaving turkey, beef, chicken out on my counter throughout my entire life as did my mother and her mother and every time we have ever cooked meat, we have overcooked it. That seems very plausible.
:insertsarcasm:0 -
Hope this helps. I was curious myself, so I did a little bit of research on the topic.
Safely Thawing Turkey
If you purchased a frozen turkey, leaving it out at room temperature is a potentially dangerous way to defrost it. There are three methods for thawing a turkey safely. The first method is to leave the turkey in the refrigerator until it is completely defrosted. This method takes the most planning, as you must make sure to allow ample time for the turkey to thaw out before you cook it. In general, allow 24 hours of thawing time for every 4 to 5 pounds of turkey.
Another way to thaw a turkey is using cold water. This method is quicker than refrigerator thawing, but requires more care. Submerge the entire wrapped turkey in cold water. To make sure that the turkey does not get up to room temperature, change the water every half hour. When thawing turkey with cold water, you must cook the turkey immediately after it defrosts.
The final method of thawing a turkey safely is the microwave oven. Remove any wrappings and place the turkey on a microwave safe dish. Use the defrost setting on your microwave, programming in the turkey's weight. Once the turkey is thawed, cook immediately0 -
just make sure you get it in the fridge. NO stuffing, and make sure the internal temperature is +165deg F use a thermometer away from any bones checking in the breast or thighs0
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http://www.butterball.com/how-tos/thaw-a-turkey
Frozen Whole Turkeys and Frozen Whole Turkey Breasts need to be thawed before cooking. For the best results, follow one of these methods:
Refrigerator Thawing
Thaw breast side up, in an unopened wrapper on a tray in the fridge.
Allow at least 1 day of thawing for every 4 lbs.
Cold Water Thawing
Thaw breast side down, in an unopened wrapper, with enough cold water to cover your turkey completely.
Change water every 30 minutes to keep the turkey chilled.
Estimate a minimum thawing time of 30 minutes per lb.
You should be fine.
Also, if you cook it properly you have nothing to worry about.0 -
If it was cold in the refrigerator, then everyone would say it is fine.
If it is still cold on the counter, people freak out.
Does anyone else logic? If it's still cold, then of course it's just fine. If it got up to room temperature, then definitely no, but it didn't.
Seriously....
Tim - I'm actually quite involved in a commercial kitchen environment with supporting education to back up what I said. Yes, human nature tells you if it still feels cold that it's OK.
Science has proven that when it sits out at room temperature for more than 2 hours it can fester bacteria. I didn't make this up. Sorry. I also said it CAN not that it WILL! You would be surprised to know the food risks that are present when temperature is just a few degrees to high or too low.
Do whatever you want with the turkey.
Edited to add reference: http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/bloopers.html
THIS!! I am a chef - do NOT eat that turkey! Any of you who thaw it on the countertop or in water are lucky as hell you have never gotten sick. My only guess as to why is because you likely overcook your bird as well. The only safe way to thaw something as large as a turkey is in the refrigerator for 2-4 days, then it must cook to a temperature of 165 (after resting for at least 20 minutes). Invest in an instant read thermometer and the time needed to thaw the bird properly.
Oh there is sooo much more on this, but I'll stop there.
I went to culinary school too ... I would eat it ... She's not serving people in a restaurant, i.e. people who could sue her (which is one of the reasons the food safety rules are so strict, that any you don't know who will be walking through your doors and what medical issues they may have, with family members, you most likely know these things ... Some of them make sense and should be practiced in the home kitchen, like avoiding cross-contamination and keeping meat on the bottom of the fridge, away from foods that you'll be serving raw ... hand-washing, etc.) ...
Just make sure you cook the turkey all the way through, t0 165 degrees F ... As long as no one in your family is severly immunocompromised, you will be fine ... Ran this one past my mom (an RN) as well ... A former culinary professional (now turned fitness professional) and an RN say you'll be fine ... If the turkey wasn't still cold, I'd say no, but it was still cold, and probably sozen in the middle, as I doubt the temperature in you house above 75 degrees ..
ETA: Also, my hunter family members and friends will kill a deer and let it sit there all day until they are done hunting, then sit even longer on the drive home to string it up ... Meat left out WAY past the 4 hour refrigeration time window ... None of use have died from food-borne illness, nor have gotten sick ... And I usually cook that venison by just searing the outside, leaving it nice and bloody-rare in the middle ...0 -
I would purchase a thermometer they arent that pricy, and technically we should be using it for all meat.0
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I would eat it, Just make sure it is cooked to internal temp of 165 and you will be just fine... Best of Luck0
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My mother defrosted meat on the counter my entire childhood and adolescence, and no one in my family ever got sick from eating it. And I've eaten my steak bloody rare since I was about ten years old, so I know she wasn't overcooking those.
I don't defrost meat that way myself, but only because I don't usually freeze meat. I don't do my shopping far enough in advance for it to be necessary.0 -
OH NOES!
It's dog food.0 -
I'd say it depends how cold it was this morning!0
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I would cook and eat it without a second thought.0
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oh please it's fine, mine will be out all day today then back in the fridge till tomorrow. I've been leaving mine out all night since I started cooking about let's see 25 freaking years ago and we've never ever had a case of food poisoning. People panic now days over things we've been doing for years. I eat the batter with raw egg in it, and lots of people eat raw eggs, unpasteurized and live to tell about it. This has been done for years and years and we've survived.0
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We've left out stuff to thaw and leftovers in the kitchen all the time whilst I was growing up. I've had food poisoning once, and that was actually because my cat had it and cross contamination somewhere.
The turkey will be fine. Cook it well as usual...no problems.0 -
We leave our turkey to defrost out of the fridge for 12-24 hours, I've done this every year, I'm not dead0
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If it was cold in the refrigerator, then everyone would say it is fine.
If it is still cold on the counter, people freak out.
Does anyone else logic? If it's still cold, then of course it's just fine. If it got up to room temperature, then definitely no, but it didn't.
Seriously....
Tim - I'm actually quite involved in a commercial kitchen environment with supporting education to back up what I said. Yes, human nature tells you if it still feels cold that it's OK.
Science has proven that when it sits out at room temperature for more than 2 hours it can fester bacteria. I didn't make this up. Sorry. I also said it CAN not that it WILL! You would be surprised to know the food risks that are present when temperature is just a few degrees to high or too low.
Do whatever you want with the turkey.
Edited to add reference: http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/bloopers.html
THIS!! I am a chef - do NOT eat that turkey! Any of you who thaw it on the countertop or in water are lucky as hell you have never gotten sick. My only guess as to why is because you likely overcook your bird as well. The only safe way to thaw something as large as a turkey is in the refrigerator for 2-4 days, then it must cook to a temperature of 165 (after resting for at least 20 minutes). Invest in an instant read thermometer and the time needed to thaw the bird properly.
Oh there is sooo much more on this, but I'll stop there.
Please do, it's silly. 25 years of cooking two turkeys a year and thawed overnight in a sink with no water and NO one has ever gotten sick from it. With a minimum of 4 people eating over those 25 years, it's pretty damn good odds it's safe to eat. This is just from one household. I'm sure there are plenty of others who do this and survive, some may have gotten sick but they really didn't cook it to the right temp with stuffing the bird.0 -
Cook it properly and there will not be a problem!0
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Technically speaking, it is at a higher risk.
I own/operate two restaurants and a catering company and this is completely unacceptable. Will it make you sick? Probably not, but the chances are much much higher that it will.
Meat should be thawed in a fridge or under COLD running water and the second option is not ideal either.
Hope it turns out regardless of what you do.0 -
We leave our turkey to defrost out of the fridge for 12-24 hours, I've done this every year, I'm not dead
are you sure you're not dead?? where is the proof??0 -
OMG I can't believe people here would eat a turkey left at ROOM TEMPERATURE overnight! Please please don't eat it...and if you DO decide to cook it? PLEASE TELL EVERYONE BEFORE *THEY* EAT IT!0
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Youll be aiiight
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OMG I can't believe people here would eat a turkey left at ROOM TEMPERATURE overnight! Please please don't eat it...and if you DO decide to cook it? PLEASE TELL EVERYONE BEFORE *THEY* EAT IT!
it's not like they left it out overnight and it's now AT room temperature. it's still cold and probably still frozen on the inside.0 -
OMG I can't believe people here would eat a turkey left at ROOM TEMPERATURE overnight! Please please don't eat it...and if you DO decide to cook it? PLEASE TELL EVERYONE BEFORE *THEY* EAT IT!
OMG I can't believe you would even consider throwing out a turkey that was frozen when sat out and thawed out and put back in the fridge the next morning. Mine's out right now, been out all day (with the heat on) and I'll put it in the fridge before I go to bed and I'm going to enjoy the heck out of it. The darn turkey is fine to eat. This has been common practice thru out the years of home cooking.0 -
Nope Sorry ya can't convince me to eat poultry left at room temp for that long! Turkey is not that expensive....toss it out and get 'nuther one.0
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Its fine. Time to cook it.0
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On average, you're going to cook a 20 lb-ish turkey at 325 degrees for 6 - 6.5 hours until a meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees. That should kill anything that may have sprouted while your turkey was thawing.
Honestly, I think people do freak out about food cleanliness in general. We're living in a 1st world country, our food is literally the cleanest in the world. Also, our bodies have natural defenses against food-born pathogens and bacteria. Put those together and add the fact that all you did was thaw the damn thing, I bet you'll be fine.0 -
On average, you're going to cook a 20 lb-ish turkey at 325 degrees for 6 - 6.5 hours until a meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees. That should kill anything that may have sprouted while your turkey was thawing.
Honestly, I think people do freak out about food cleanliness in general. We're living in a 1st world country, our food is literally the cleanest in the world. Also, our bodies have natural defenses against food-born pathogens and bacteria. Put those together and add the fact that all you did was thaw the damn thing, I bet you'll be fine.
#1stWorldProblems0 -
I have just asked my husband who is a microbiologist and he said it will be fine don't worry. We pay absolutely no attentio to use by or sell by dates either. If it smells fine just eat it.0
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OMG I can't believe people here would eat a turkey left at ROOM TEMPERATURE overnight! Please please don't eat it...and if you DO decide to cook it? PLEASE TELL EVERYONE BEFORE *THEY* EAT IT!
It never even made it close to room temperature.0
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