A National Fried Chicken Day Conundrum

[+ Gar1eth]

I was extremely remiss in not wishing everyone a Happy National Fried Chicken Day yesterday. Unfortunately the holiday got away from me. I wasn't even able to have my traditional holiday meal (fried chicken, green beans, and mashed potatoes) until today.

 

I bought the chicken from a local place as I've never stove fried chicken before (I've done oven fried in the long distance past). Stove frying seems like a lot of work and mess for one person.

 

After I arrived home I kept the chicken warm in the oven while I was heating up the green beans. The following conundrum occurred to me.

 

Some people like eating leftover cold fried chicken from the refrigerator. But if you want to reheat the leftover fried chicken, the USDA says make sure it reaches a temperature of 165 F.

 

So the chicken is apparently safe to eat right out of the refrigerator for a few days. But if we want it warm, that same chicken that we just took out of the refrigerator and would have been fine to eat cold, has to reach 165 F????

 

Gman

[+ GregM]

If i have left over chicken I prefer it cold. Reheating does something to the skin I don't care for. We don't cook fried chicken at home either, its just too messy and takes too much oil and peanut oil can be pricey. When we do a meal I love collard greens (more vinegar less sweet), jalenpeno corn bread and a side of honey butter to put on the corn bread and chicken.

[+ Gar1eth]

If i have left over chicken I prefer it cold. Reheating does something to the skin I don't care for. We don't cook fried chicken at home either, its just too messy and takes too much oil and peanut oil can be pricey. When we do a meal I love collard greens (more vinegar less sweet), jalenpeno corn bread and a side of honey butter to put on the corn bread and chicken.

 

I prefer it warm. I've find the best way to reheat it is to put the oven at 450 F. And put the chicken in a roaster with a piece of foil over it for 20 minutes or so. I like crispy breading. But I like the underlying fat to be slightly moist-so the breading is still very slightly moist and not totally dry like toast.

 

Gman

[+ GregM]

Wow did KFC really screw up not sending me a reminder and a special! FYI hot dog day is Wednesday the 22nd of this month. Wienerschnitzel is celebrating with....discounted chili dogs. I believe chili dogs have a different day of celebration, so that is blasphemy.

 

I hope Portillos has a special on Chicago dogs. It's the only way I eat them now. Drag that bitch through the garden and back!

[+ Lucky]

Once it is cooked to a temperature of 165, then I don't think it needs re-cooking. Warm it to your taste and eat.

[+ Gar1eth]

Wow did KFC really screw up not sending me a reminder and a special! FYI hot dog day is Wednesday the 22nd of this month. Wienerschnitzel is celebrating with....discounted chili dogs. I believe chili dogs have a different day of celebration, so that is blasphemy.

 

Wienerschnitzel had a Dogs of the World promotion until just recently. One of the featured hotdogs was German inspired. I can't remember what all was on it-probably sauerkraut and maybe some sautéed onions. But the mustard they used was beer mustard. It was delicious!! I actually looked up how to make mustard. For a small jar it's not that hard. It apparently doesn't even need pressure cooking-vinegar, mustard seed, a mortar and pestle, some spices and voila!!

 

Gman

[rvwnsd]

I hope Portillos has a special on Chicago dogs. It's the only way I eat them now. Drag that bitch through the garden and back!

Back in the day, it was Byron's or nothing for me. Now that I live in AZ, Portillo's is just fine.

 

As for fried chicken, I like it either cold or warm. Someone mentioned there is a Harold's here in Phoenix. Might be celebrating Fried Chicken day a few days late this year.

 

PS: If you find yourself in Chicago for National BBQ Day, I highly recommend Hecky's in Evanston. Totally worth the trip.

[rvwnsd]

Once it is cooked to a temperature of 165, then I don't think it needs re-cooking. Warm it to your taste and eat.

I always thought the same, but recently started seeing warnings to re-heat leftovers to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If memory serves, the reason given was bacteria thrives when the food reaches the so-called "danger zone" above 40 degrees but does not survive when the food is heated to above 165 degrees.

[+ Lucky]

I always thought the same, but recently started seeing warnings to re-heat leftovers to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If memory serves, the reason given was bacteria thrives when the food reaches the so-called "danger zone" above 40 degrees but does not survive when the food is heated to above 165 degrees.

So eating any cold food from the fridge that had previously been cooked is dangerous unless re-cooked? If that's so, a lot of sick people are still eating cold food!

[+ GregM]

So eating any cold food from the fridge that had previously been cooked is dangerous unless re-cooked? If that's so, a lot of sick people are still eating cold food!

 

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/article/29/following-food-safety-temperatures.html

[JayCeeKy]

[+ WilliamM]

So eating any cold food from the fridge that had previously been cooked is dangerous unless re-cooked? If that's so, a lot of sick people are still eating cold food!

 

I have learned a lot here about preparing food. But, this latest one sounds wrong.

 

Thanks for posting,@Lucky.

[+ Gar1eth]

Once it is cooked to a temperature of 165, then I don't think it needs re-cooking. Warm it to your taste and eat.

I always thought the same, but recently started seeing warnings to re-heat leftovers to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If memory serves, the reason given was bacteria thrives when the food reaches the so-called "danger zone" above 40 degrees but does not survive when the food is heated to above 165 degrees.

So eating any cold food from the fridge that had previously been cooked is dangerous unless re-cooked? If that's so, a lot of sick people are still eating cold food!

I think so too. But apparently the danger zone starts at 40 Fahrenheit (4.44 C for most of the rest of the world). So from an article on Real Simple

 

"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says the recommended refrigerator temperature is below 40°F; the ideal freezer temp is below 0°F."

 

Gman

[rvwnsd]

So eating any cold food from the fridge that had previously been cooked is dangerous unless re-cooked? If that's so, a lot of sick people are still eating cold food!

You can eat pre-cooked cold foods out of the fridge, but if you re-heat the food it should be re-heated to 165 degrees, according to the USDA and the NSF (formerly known as the National Sanitation Foundation). The Mayo Clinic and The University of Wisconsin Extension recommend the same practice.

[+ Gar1eth]

You can eat pre-cooked cold foods out of the fridge, but if you re-heat the food it should be re-heated to 165 degrees, according to the USDA and the NSF (formerly known as the National Sanitation Foundation). The Mayo Clinic and The University of Wisconsin Extension recommend the same practice.

 

That's the part that doesn't make sense. If you can eat it cold straight out of the fridge, and if it can be out of refrigeration for 2 hours, why if heating it doesn't take longer than 2 hours -which it won't-should it have to reach 165 degrees?

 

Gman

[+ azdr0710]

why haven't I long since died of food poisoning by now??!!......all these rules.......

 

[+ WilliamM]

You can eat pre-cooked cold foods out of the fridge, but if you re-heat the food it should be re-heated to 165 degrees, according to the USDA and the NSF (formerly known as the National Sanitation Foundation). The Mayo Clinic and The University of Wisconsin Extension recommend the same practice.

 

How many people follow those rules? What happens if it is re-heated to only 100degrees?

[MikeBiDude]

I wonder how anyone took home fried chicken to a picnic in a basket these last 200-300 years and didn’t get sick? <BIG sarcasm emoji here>

[MikeBiDude]

I have learned a lot here about preparing food. But, this latest one sounds wrong.

 

Thanks for posting,@Lucky.

It’s not “wrong”, but largely unnecessary in the average home that practices good cooking practices in the first place. How long has anyone let a hamburger sit in a to go bag before eating it? Might have been around 155° when it leaves the restaurant. But 20 minutes later when you eat it? 40, 60 minutes. Did you get food poisoning?

[+ Gar1eth]

It’s not “wrong”, but largely unnecessary in the average home that practices good cooking practices in the first place. How long has anyone let a hamburger sit in a to go bag before eating it? Might have been around 155° when it leaves the restaurant. But 20 minutes later when you eat it? 40, 60 minutes. Did you get food poisoning?

 

While it can depend on the preparation and whether it was contaminated beforehand, they say for a lot of stuff that the magic time is 2 hours. Food needs to be refrigerated or frozen definitely before two hours. For some items they say as soon as it's cooled enough to go in the refrigerator or freezer. Obviously you don't want to put something steaming in either place as it would raise their temperatures.

 

Gman

Edited July 8, 2020 by Gar1eth

[mike carey]

As others have said, it makes no sense that it could be safe to eat something cold, but if you want to heat it, you need to heat it to 165°F (74°). I read the advice to be precautionary in case the times in the danger zone had exceeded two hours (or one hour above 32°), or on the presumption that the person reheating the food didn't know how long it had been stored at those temperatures. The notion that the safe time suddenly halves at 32° doesn't pass the common sense test, but it does illustrate the point that higher temperatures in the zone are more dangerous. If you know its history, heating food as little or as much as you want shouldn't be a problem. (The Australian guidelines have the danger zone from 5-60° and the temperature for reheating at 75°, but it specifies that temperature for high risk foods, not as a standard for all foods. The article I read didn't define 'high risk'.)

[+ WilliamM]

While it can depend on the preparation and whether it was contaminate beforehand, they say for a lot of stuff that the magic time is 2 hours. Food needs to be refrigerated or frozen definitely before two hours. For some items they say as soon as it's cooled enough to go in the refrigerator or freezer. Obfuosily don't want to put something steaming in either place as it would raise their temperatures.

 

Gman

 

How does the parent of a large family follow all those rules? My grandmother was strick and savvy, but she had eight children. My other grandmother had four children.

[MikeBiDude]

I routinely (as virtually all multi starred restaurant chefs do) “temper” my meat room to temp before cooking it. Hours sometimes. Steaks, briskets, plate ribs, and yes chicken although I watch the chicken tempering more carefully. It’s not unusual for me to leave a large brisket oR pork butt out on the kitchen counter 8 hours or more before putting on my smoker or grill. They’re about 55° when I put them on.

 

I will point out...I’m talking mostly whole muscle meats here, the likelihood of contaminated brisket deep inside the the 18# of meat is slight. For you E. coli worriers, it almost never comes from whole muscle meat...mostly (commercially) ground beef where the meat is over processed and mixed with unsavory parts of the cow. This is why I eat steak tartare as well without E. coli worries. One of my favorite restaurants (now gone ?) would being the whole muscle steak for the tartare to the table to display it to me before returning it to the kitchen to prepare.

Edited July 8, 2020 by MikeBiDude

[rvwnsd]

How many people follow those rules? What happens if it is re-heated to only 100degrees?

A stigmata instantly appears on their forehead reading "165 qechmeyDaj Huj chuvmey vIchel tuj jIH."

[+ WilliamM]

A stigmata instantly appears on their forehead reading "165 qechmeyDaj Huj chuvmey vIchel tuj jIH."

 

Thanks.. I'll be prepared!