Would YoU Eat It???

[sab]

Ok Old Timers - what's the answer?! Here's the scenario I cooked a whole chicken in the oven with some water. When I took it out at 7:30 it was super hot. It was cooked @ 350 for almost 2 hours. It was mostly frozen when placed in the oven. But thoroughly cooked. I left it on counter to cool off. Remembered it at 3:30am. Would you eat it? I think the USDA and FDA both over protect us. Just as in the case of eggs

So? Toss or keep? Inquiring minds want to know.
Thanks

 

[Czech's_chicks]

I would. for breakfast, but nothing later and I'd reheat it in an omlet or something. Heck, I'd probably fry it up crispy in grapeseed oil, just in case...and I'd still use the bones for stock.

I'm risky, though - some say too much. I like to run around barefoot and one put a pitch fork thru my foot...damage was already done so I keep doing what I was doing and then went in and cleaned it.

However, I must add the disclaimer - when in doubt, throw it out.

Good luck...but don't let others who may be as off kilter as I am decide, we aren't the ones who may get the rough end of it. Got any dogs?

 

[TinaK]

So that was 8 hours on the bench then?

What temp was it inside your kitchen during that time? I think that will say a lot about how 'safe' the chicken is. Would I serve it in a commercial kitchen? HELL NO! Would I feed it to children or the elderly?..... probably not! Would I eat it myself... if the room was cool during that time, and I was hungry... staring at a lovely roast chook..... Of course I'd eat it

I'm a lot like Czech's chicks though. I'm risky... when it comes to my meat at least! lol I'll eat almost anything. Oh and I'm no old timer.. I just like my food.

 

[bigmike&nan]

So that was 8 hours on the bench then?

What temp was it inside your kitchen during that time? I think that will say a lot about how 'safe' the chicken is. Would I serve it in a commercial kitchen? HELL NO! Would I feed it to children or the elderly?..... probably not! Would I eat it myself... if the room was cool during that time, and I was hungry... staring at a lovely roast chook..... Of course I'd eat it

I'm a lot like Czech's chicks though. I'm risky... when it comes to my meat at least! lol I'll eat almost anything. Oh and I'm no old timer.. I just like my food.

In a food sanitation exercise this chicken would get tossed. Why ?? It went mainly frozen into a 350 degree oven (that is Farenheit correct ??) for 2 hours, then sat on a counter for 7 hours. How large a bird would help determining if the bird really thawed and cooked in 2 hours at 350, doubt it even with a smaller bird... Toss it.

Now if the bird was fully thawed and sat at room temp 1/2 hour before you roasted it at 350 for 2 hours and then sat in a semi cool room for 7 hours MAYBE if you ate it right away, recooked in a stir fry or something where the meat really got recooked a tad... But to be safe, toss... You learned to not rush so much and also to remember to deal with food properly after it is cooked. Chickens are cheap - food poisoning is no fun for any age group... Why risk it ??

 

[sab]

Chicken was fully cooked. Falling off the bone cooked. I had it thawed enough to remove the neck and liver packed inside it. I'm sure it was not thoroughly thawed but the inside cavity was mostly thawed. I wouldn't have cooked any longer. It was probably a 4 lb bird.

Had lunch with 3 friends who said they would eat it in a heartbeat and felt as long as it was thoroughly cooked to begin with then they wouldn't hesitate.

Thanks for all your thoughts. I know folks hesitate to advise cause there's always that possibility of sickness and who wants to think they contributed to that.

For the record, I have T-bone steaks thawing for dinner tonight... But I might make a cold chicken sandwich and use myself as a guinea pig. Time will tell.

Thanks again!

 

[Oregon Blues]

I'd toss it.

It isn't worth the risk of getting sick. I wouldn't even feed it to my dogs. 8 hours of sitting out on the counter, unless your kitchen is icy cold, about refrigerator temperature, you have an excellent incubator of bacteria there. The issue is not the cooking. The issue is the amount of time you left it at a good temperature to cultivate bacteria.

Now, during the winter, I'll set food out in my garage to cool and leave it to morning, but it is 30-32 degrees F out there at night. That's a big difference from room temperature.

 

[Pele]

All the food sanitation rules say toss it..... BUT if it were me, I'd nuke it in the microwave when I want to eat it, and call the matter settled. Sure you'll get overcooked chicken that way, but that will also kill any heebie jeebies that might have taken the opportunity to grow on it.

I can't stand to see food go to waste that needs just a little bit extra effort to make safe (if you consider microwaving something 'effort'). The average kitchen is clean enough to get away with more shenanegans than a commercial kitchen could.

 

[KBlue]

I'd eat it.

But I'm also someone that will leave meat in the sink to defrost all day and I've left stuff on the stove overnight that was still too hot to put in the fridge without cracking the shelves.

This is a completely perosnal decision. If it weirds you out, toss it. If it doesn't bother you, eat it.