Loved your piping hot bowl of stew and now going towards the fridge to refrigerate the left over? Stop! You may want to wait for it to cool down to room temperature before putting it in the fridge. In our bid to wrap up all the kitchen work in a jiffy, we often end up keeping foods that are still hot in the fridge. Did you know this can actually be dangerous for you and your family? The purpose of freezing is essentially to prevent the food from losing its nutritive content and to keep it fresh and uncontaminated for a longer period of time. Whether it is freezing, reheating or refrigerating, its best to exercise caution. Show
Bangalore based nutritionist Dr. Anju Sood says, "If you immediately put hot food or hot liquids in refrigerator you may lose its nutritive values and might just make your Refrigerator work extra hard. It is okay to put mildly hot food in the refrigerator though. You should at least wait for it to come down to room temperature before refrigerating.  You should at least wait for the food to come down to room temperature before refrigerating. Meher Rajput, Nutritionist at FITPASS explains, "Hot food should be brought down to room temperature-because if placed in the fridge(boiling hot) the salmonella bacteria can spoil the food very easily in the fridge.Also, by placing hot food in the fridge you are risking other perishable foods(eggs, vegetables and meat)- the chances of them getting contaminated increases." However you should not wait more than a certain amount of time. Shalini Manglani, Nutrition expert from Bangalore says that "hot food should not be kept out for longer than two hours as bacteria starts to multiply post this. Refrigerate within two hours if you want to wait." Consultant Nutritionist Dr. Rupali Dutta explains that it is always ideal to store all perishable food milk, vegetables, meat and cooked food to avoid spoilage."If you are storing cooked food do so within 2 hours of cooking. Cooling it faster also helps, divide the food into smaller portions so that it cools fast and can be frozen sooner to avoid contamination. Maintain the moisture content of food by wrapping them in air tight containers or foils. This also prevents the odour of different foods from mixing while keeping the bacteria out. Frozen food can be kept for up to almost 2-3 months, but check the colour, odour and taste of the food to see if it is edible," says Dr. Dutta. Another common belief that is often attached to putting hot food in the fridge is that it would harm your appliance or affect the temperature of the foods around it. Well, with newer appliances you don't have to worry much, the thermostat of the refrigerator will ensure that there is no harm to your appliance by regulating temperature and moisture. However if you have an old model you can choose to take some precautions like storing the hot food in air tight containers, this helps you avoid condensation and icing. Tips To Ensure Before Refrigerating Your Hot Food 1. If you must put hot food in the refrigerator, try not to put hot food in deep containers. They take longer to cool, put them in shallow containers so that the can chill easier. You can then place these very shallow containers in the refrigerator, this will also ensure faster cooling. 2. Divide you food in smaller portions. Place them in smaller containers 3. You can also quick-chill the food in an ice water bath before refrigerating it. 4. You can also cool it on the counter until the steam stops. 5. Cover the hot liquids that you are intending refrigerate. If left uncovered, they can release moisture which can make the compressor work harder than it should. As a general rule of thumb, it is always advisable to place the containers (be it hot of mild) wisely, mind the spaces in between them, to ensure better air circulation and optimal cooling. Make sure you don't keep the food out for more than two hours, the bacteria can begin to grow soon after. About Sushmita SenguptaSharing a strong penchant for food, Sushmita loves all things good, cheesy and greasy. Her other favourite pastime activities other than discussing food includes, reading, watching movies and binge-watching TV shows.
My partner and I have different views about safe storage of leftovers. Is it better to wait around and allow it to cool to room temperature before placing in the fridge or freezer, or put it in without delay? J. LarkinsFrom the way you framed this question it sounds like you're the get-it-into-the-fridge straight away kind of guy. According to the Department of Health and Human Services Victoria, putting a large amount of very hot food into the fridge in one go could raise the temperature of all the contents of the fridge above 5C. The danger zone for food is between 5C and 60C over two hours. So, you want to reduce the temperature of the food to around 21C within two hours before you put it in the fridge. To help cool the food down faster, you can increase the surface area by portioning it into smaller containers or spreading the food over a large tray to allow the heat to dissipate. Dishes such as rice can be forked through to bring more of the interior to the surface to exchange heat into the air. Seal containers and write the name of the contents plus the date on the lid. Why is the Italian cheese called grana padano? K. LandsburyGrana is Italian for "grain" and refers to the grainy texture of the cheese. It is made with partially skimmed milk, to which is added some of the previous day's whey, plus some rennet. The fine curds are hand cut and gently heated to release moisture, before being packed into hoops where the lactic acid fermentation takes over. The rinds are washed and the 24-40 kilogram wheels are matured for a minimum of nine months. During that time, enzymes break down the protein from the milk into amino acids, and these form salts or "cheese crystals" that have a granular feeling on the tongue. These are more noticeable the longer the cheese is aged. Padano comes from the Latin word for the Po River, Padus. According to European protection of origin laws, grano padano must be made in the Po Valley. Therefore, this grainy cheese made in the Po River Valley is called grana padano. Compared to its older and more revered brother parmigiano-reggiano, grana padano is a softer, milder and less salty, milder tasting cheese that won't dominate a dish. It is therefore ideal for adding to dishes such as risotto. It is also cheaper than parmigiano so can be grated liberally into garlic bread or a cheese toastie, or over a soup, Roman-style abbacchio lamb or chicken parmigiana. We harvested some chestnuts over Easter. How do we prepare them, and how long will they last? V. GregoryChestnuts are fresh food and will not last much longer than three weeks after harvest. Store them in an airtight container in the crisper in the fridge and preferably use them within 10 days. Get the latest news and updates emailed straight to your inbox. To peel a chestnut, take a short sharp knife and make a nick or cross in the nut's flat base. Simmer in water for 15 minutes or roast at 180C for 15 minutes. Allow to cool enough to handle and peel, using the tip and blade of the knife. The skins are painful if they get under your fingernails. The brown inner skin should rub away with a clean dishcloth, but you may need to use the tip of the knife to work some of the skin out of deep crevices. Send your vexing culinary conundrums to or tweet to @foodcornish How long should I leave chicken to cool before refrigerating?But you should still aim to refrigerate food within 2 hours of cooking it, even if it's still a bit warm. To help food cool down faster, you can split it in smaller containers, and as soon as they've cooled to room temperature, they can then go in the fridge.
Can you put chicken in the refrigerator when it's still warm?It is OK to store hot foods in the fridge. You do not have to wait for the foods to cool before you put them away. In fact, it's better to store them right away, while they're still hot, than to forget them and leave them sitting at room temperature too long.
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Should you let chicken cool before putting fridge
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