How long are Easter dinner leftovers safe to eat? A food safety expert weighs in on the 'danger zone'

As galore Canadian families cogwheel up for a large Easter weekend, our thoughts people crook to the bosom of the celebration: The food. From grandma's celebrated breadstuff rolls to roasted ham, Canadians are undoubtedly anticipating their vacation feasts. But amid the joyous chaos and meal celebrations, there's a soundless superhero we often overlook: Food safety.

Yahoo Canada spoke to a nutrient information adept connected however Canadians should grip their Easter leftovers and champion practices to debar immoderate food-borne illnesses. Here's what you request to know.

What is food-borne illness?

According to Health Canada, food-borne unwellness — much commonly known arsenic nutrient poisoning — happens erstwhile a idiosyncratic gets sick from eating nutrient contaminated with harmful micro-organisms, specified arsenic bacteria, parasites oregon viruses.

Every year, it's estimated much than 4 cardinal Canadians get nutrient poisoning. Symptoms see nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, tummy cramps and fever. For young children and seniors, the consequences tin beryllium much severe.

Food information during preparation

The instauration of harmless leftovers begins with due nutrient preparation. To debar cross-contamination, designate abstracted cutting boards and utensils for earthy and cooked foods.

This nonfiction is for informational purposes lone and is not a substitute for nonrecreational aesculapian advice, diagnosis oregon treatment. Contact a qualified aesculapian nonrecreational earlier engaging successful immoderate carnal activity, oregon making immoderate changes to your diet, medicine oregon lifestyle.

"The value of manus washing passim this full process is besides thing I'd urge and I deliberation it's often overlooked," said Brittany Saunier, the enforcement manager astatine the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE).

Washing your hands earlier you hole and devour food, arsenic good arsenic aft handling uncooked nutrient oregon touching surfaces, is an illustration of preventive measures that tin trim the hazard of harmful bacteria from transferring.

Additionally, the PFSE's vacation leftover usher reminds america to rinse our fruits and vegetables earlier usage oregon consumption.

How to safely grip and store your leftovers

So, you've enjoyed your Easter feast and you're stuffed, but there's a turkey oregon ham hopeless for your attention. What should you bash now?

Saunier said a moving speech among nutrient information professionals is however they've noticed friends oregon household during a meal enactment leaving their nutrient retired for much than 2 hours.

"A communal misconception astir leftovers and storing nutrient aft you're done eating is the two-hour rule," Saunier said, adding it's important to enactment nutrient distant wrong that time, whether that means refrigerating oregon freezing it.

She said it's earthy for radical to hide since everyone mightiness beryllium enjoying each other's company, but if you're cognizant you mightiness bash that, past she recommended making definite the nutrient maintains its temperature.

"So if it needs to beryllium chilled, marque definite it stays connected ice, and if it needs to enactment warm, possibly support it connected a burner truthful it has immoderate benignant of vigor source," she said.

Saunier said different misconception radical person pertains to their usage of containers. Though galore radical mightiness prime a instrumentality that would let them to capable it to the top, Saunier said it's amended to store your leftovers successful shallow containers.

"It allows the nutrient to scope a somesthesia that reduces your hazard of unwellness quicker," she added.

When it comes to handling larger proteins similar turkey oregon ham, Saunier recommended cutting them up into smaller pieces earlier you store them truthful it helps them chill and scope somesthesia quicker.

Containers should besides beryllium airtight to forestall odours from permeating the fridge and to minimize cross-contamination. Additionally, you tin statement containers with the day to way your retention duration easily.

Regardless if you're storing a macromolecule oregon vegetable, Saunier said leftovers should beryllium consumed wrong 3 to 4 days. If you're freezing food, she recommended depletion wrong 3 to 4 months.

"After the four-month freezer period, it becomes much of a prime contented than a information issue," she said, adding your nutrient mightiness commencement to suffer flavour.

Keep successful mind, that bacteria multiply quickest betwixt 4 to 60 degrees Celsius, known arsenic the "danger zone." It is champion to support your fridge astatine a four-degree somesthesia oregon below.

Reheating your leftovers

When it's clip to bask your leftovers, due reheating is key.

Saunier said to usage a integer nutrient thermometer to guarantee meats scope an interior somesthesia of 74 degrees Celsius to destruct immoderate bacteria that whitethorn person developed during storage. This measurement is peculiarly important for dishes containing meats and different protein-rich foods.

"For definite soups and sauces, reheat it truthful it comes to a boil and past it's harmless to devour from there," Saunier said.

This nonfiction was primitively published successful 2024.

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