There are three categories for storing food: perishable foods in the refrigerator, frozen foods in the freezer, and shelf-stable foods in a dry, clean place. Perishable foods like meat and dairy should be refrigerated and used within a few days. Frozen foods last longer but quality degrades over time. Shelf-stable canned and packaged foods can be stored for months to years but should be discarded if containers are damaged or suspect. Proper food storage temperatures and following expiration dates are important for food safety.
There are three categories for storing food: perishable foods in the refrigerator, frozen foods in the freezer, and shelf-stable foods in a dry, clean place. Perishable foods like meat and dairy should be refrigerated and used within a few days. Frozen foods last longer but quality degrades over time. Shelf-stable canned and packaged foods can be stored for months to years but should be discarded if containers are damaged or suspect. Proper food storage temperatures and following expiration dates are important for food safety.
There are three categories for storing food: perishable foods in the refrigerator, frozen foods in the freezer, and shelf-stable foods in a dry, clean place. Perishable foods like meat and dairy should be refrigerated and used within a few days. Frozen foods last longer but quality degrades over time. Shelf-stable canned and packaged foods can be stored for months to years but should be discarded if containers are damaged or suspect. Proper food storage temperatures and following expiration dates are important for food safety.
There are three categories for storing food: perishable foods in the refrigerator, frozen foods in the freezer, and shelf-stable foods in a dry, clean place. Perishable foods like meat and dairy should be refrigerated and used within a few days. Frozen foods last longer but quality degrades over time. Shelf-stable canned and packaged foods can be stored for months to years but should be discarded if containers are damaged or suspect. Proper food storage temperatures and following expiration dates are important for food safety.
The food you store falls into three basic “storage categories.” • Perishable food: in the refrigerator (read the label if you’re not sure) • Frozen food: in the freezer • Shelf-stable food: in a clean, dry place
Refrigerated Perishable Food
It’s a Date! Food safety is the best reason ever • As you store your food, check dates to “chill out”! Follow these basic on the labels. guidelines to protect your perishables — • If a product does not have a date on it, and yourself and your family. And write the purchase date on it before remember: always refrigerate perishable you refrigerate or freeze it. food within 2 hours—1 hour when the • Place newer items in the back of the temperature is above 90 °F (32.2 °C). refrigerator or freezer. That way, you’ll • Raw Meat, Poultry, and Seafood: use the older ones first. Place in containers or sealed plastic bags to prevent their juices from dripping onto other food in the • Leftovers: Refrigerate (or freeze) refrigerator. This could cause cross- leftovers within 2 hours after cooking contamination (see inset box, page 8). in clean, shallow, covered contain- If you’re not planning to use the food ers to prevent harmful bacteria from within a day or two, freeze it. multiplying. (See more on Leftovers on • Cooked, Whole Stuffed Poultry: page 30.) Remove stuffing and refrigerate it in a separate covered container. • Eggs: Store in the original carton and place in the main compartment of the refrigerator — not in the door. When ready to use, do not wash them. (Read more about Eggs on page 28.) • Produce: Store perishable produce in the refrigerator. Throw away fresh fruits and vegetables that have not been refrigerated within 2 hours of cutting, peeling, or cooking.
11 Frozen Food For long-term storage of many perishable foods, rely on the freezer. Food stored constantly at 0 °F (-17.8 °C) or below will always be safe. Only the quality suffers with lengthy freezer storage. Freezer Facts • Preventing Freezer Burn: Freezer burn — white, dried-out patches on the surface of meat — won’t make you (See Thawing section on page 16.) sick, but it does make meat tough and However, there may be a loss of tasteless. Here’s how to avoid it: quality because of the moisture lost — Wrap freezer items in heavy freezer through defrosting. paper, plastic wrap, or foil. • Freezing Cooked Food: After — Date all freezer packages. Use the cooking raw food that was previously oldest food first. frozen, it is safe to freeze the cooked food. — Place new items toward the back In addition, if previously cooked food was of the freezer; that way, older items frozen and then thawed in the refrigerator, are easier to access and you’ll use you may refreeze the unused portion. them first. • Prevent Moisture Loss: To maintain • Refreezing Thawed Food: If food is quality when freezing meat and thawed in the refrigerator, it is safe to poultry in its original packaging, overwrap refreeze it without cooking. the package with foil or plastic wrap that is recommended for use in the freezer.
Your Refrigerator and Freezer: Take Their Temperatures!
It’s common to assume that your refrigerator’s temperature control dial keeps food cold enough, but this isn’t necessarily true. “Built-in” temperature control dials may not be effective, and if your refrigerator isn’t cooling to 40 °F (4.4 °C) or below, you’re providing a haven for bacteria to grow. • Instead, use a separate appliance thermometer to check the internal refrigerator tem- perature and help keep food safe. They are available in grocery, hardware, and kitchen specialty stores. • If the refrigerator thermometer shows a temperature that’s too high (above 40 °F/4.4 °C), adjust the refrigerator’s control dial. • Use the thermometer to check the freezer, too. It should read 0 °F (-17.8 °C) or below. If not, adjust the dial.
12 Cold Storage Chart Product Refrigerator Freezer (40 °F/4.4 °C) (0 °F/-17.8 °C) Eggs — See Page 29 Salads Egg, chicken, ham, tuna & 3 to 5 days Does not freeze well macaroni salads Hot dogs Opened package 1 week 1 to 2 months Unopened package 2 weeks 1 to 2 months Luncheon meat Opened package or deli sliced 3 to 5 days 1 to 2 months Unopened package 2 weeks 1 to 2 months Bacon & Sausage Bacon 7 days 1 month Sausage, raw — from chicken, 1 to 2 days 1 to 2 months turkey, pork, beef Hamburger & Other Ground Meats Hamburger, ground beef, turkey, veal, pork, lamb, & mixtures of them 1 to 2 days 3 to 4 months
Fresh Beef, Veal, Lamb & Pork
Steaks 3 to 5 days 6 to 12 months Chops 3 to 5 days 4 to 6 months Roasts 3 to 5 days 4 to 12 months Fresh Poultry Chicken or turkey, whole 1 to 2 days 1 year Chicken or turkey, pieces 1 to 2 days 9 months Soups & Stews Vegetable or meat added 3 to 4 days 2 to 3 months Leftovers Cooked meat or poultry 3 to 4 days 2 to 6 months Chicken nuggets or patties 3 to 4 days 1 to 3 months Pizza 3 to 4 days 1 to 2 months
13 Shelf-Stable Food Food that doesn’t need to be refrigerated or frozen must still be stored with care. Follow these basic guidelines and you’ll have food safety in the bag (or can)! • Where: Store canned food and other shelf-stable products in a cool, clean, dry place. Never put them above the stove, under the sink, in a damp garage or basement, or any place exposed to high or low temperature Botulism Alert extremes. The greatest danger in canned goods • How Long: In general, you can store is a toxin produced by the Clostridium high-acid food, such as tomatoes botulinum bacteria. Never use food and other fruit, for 12 to 18 months; from containers that show possible low-acid food, such as meat and “botulism” warnings: vegetables, 2 to 5 years. • Leaking, bulging, or badly dented cans • Care and Cautions for Cans: Discard • Cracked jars or jars with loose or cans that are dented, leaking, bulging, bulging lids or rusted. Can linings might discolor • Canned food with a foul odor or corrode when metal reacts with • Any container that spurts liquid or high-acid food, such as tomatoes foam when opened. or pineapple, but as long as the Play it safe — and never taste it. Even a outside of the can is in good shape, tiny amount of botulinum toxin can be the contents should be safe to eat. deadly. Keep in mind, though, that the taste, Double bag the cans and jars in plastic texture, and nutritional value of the bags that are tightly closed. Then place food can diminish over time. in a trash receptacle for non-recyclable (Also see Floods on page 41.) trash outside of the home. Keep out of reach of humans and pets.
Common Sense Caution
If you’re not sure how old a food is, or fear that it may not have been properly refrigerated or has been left out too long, don’t taste it! Instead, remember the “golden rule” of food storage:
