| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
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| Tomato sauce/paste storage | 10/10/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: Chris: I've heard that tomatoes in cooked form (ketchup, sauce, or paste) can become toxic if not ...
A: Tomatoes are typically acidic and have some level of shelf stability from their low pH. ...
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| selling baked goods | 10/10/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: I am already a small business owner. I own a small ice cream shop that is closed during the winter. ...
A: The first thing you should do is contact your local health department. Regulations vary widely from ...
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| lasagna...thawed and later frozen, can it be eaten | 10/7/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: i noticed our freezer was leaking lots of water. someone left the door open. I stupidly forgot to ...
A: It's hard to say without knowing how thawed everything became. If everything thawed completely, to ...
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| Quiche | 10/6/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I made a quiche Sunday morning and want to send a portion to a friend by overnight mail. Crazy, I ...
A: It's not recommended to send frozen potentially hazardous foods (foods like eggs, meat, poultry, ...
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| Extended Shelf Life for Salad dressing | 10/5/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: Have a great day. ANSWER: Hi William, I don't quite understand the question. Are you asking how ...
A: So I assume that the container of Creamy Italian was a product that was made and then stored as ...
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| VACUUM PACK CHICKEN | 10/5/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: AFTER THAWING UNDER REFRIGERATION. HOW LONG CAN CHICKEN THAT IS IN VACUUM PACK PLASTIC BE HELD IN A ...
A: The general recommendation for the storage of properly thawed chicken is using within 1-2 days. As ...
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| Making Applesauce | 10/1/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: Is it safe to cook the entire apple, including the seeds when making applesauce at home?
A: While it is safe to cook the entire apple when making applesauce, it makes it much more difficult to ...
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| Thawing Chicken | 9/30/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I left a pack of frozen boneless chicken breast on the counter. They were frozen solid at 10 pm and ...
A: The recommendation is to not cook potentially hazardous foods that have completely defrosted at room ...
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| minced steak | 9/29/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: i took mincr from the freezer yesterday but forgot about it and left it out overnight... it was ...
A: Meat that has been left at room temperature for defrosting is not considered a safe food to cook and ...
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| Fruit and Vegetable sticker codes | 9/28/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: There are little stickers on all fruits and some vegetables these days. I have heard they are coded ...
A: I suggest you check out this website provided by University of Missouri Extension for a good ...
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| cooked rotissere chicken bought from store | 9/28/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: How many days can I eat the chicken until it gets too old to eat?
A: The general recommendation for cooked chicken is 3-4 days. While the chicken may be still safe to ...
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| chicken soup | 9/28/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: we made chicken stock from scratch yesterday. we turned off the stove at 8pm. my room mate forgot ...
A: You are right....chicken stock with chicken parts that have sat at room temperature overnight should ...
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| Chicken with bleach odor | 9/28/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: Many times when I buy chicken at our local supermarket, I will notice an odor of bleach on the ...
A: Have you spoken with the meat manager at our local supermarket about this odor? Chances are either ...
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| Defrosted pork chops | 9/27/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I defrosted pork chops in the refrigerator over night and they are now defrosted. How long can they ...
A: Defrosted meats such as pork chops should be cooked within 3-4 days so you do not need to cook them ...
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| Chicken Broth | 9/27/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I have Trader Joes chicken broth that I put in a bowl in the microwave for a minute and ate a few ...
A: While the directions indicate heat and serve or heat thoroughly, any commercially canned or ...
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| Ingesting Mold | 9/26/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I found mold in my 22 month old twins sippy cup at the daycare. My son has had a sinus infection for ...
A: Repeated ingestion of mold and mold spores can cause allergic reactions such as headaches, runny ...
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| Pork Loin Roast | 9/26/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: How long can a defrosted pork loin stay in the refrig.
A: The recommendation for defrosted, whole muscle meat, is 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator. For a ...
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| Frozen grapes and gooseberries | 9/25/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: How long can you keep frozen fruit in the freezer? Is it safe to use them after 1 year?
A: As long as foods stay solidly frozen they are SAFE to use for years. Guidelines for frozen foods ...
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| Chicken | 9/24/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I pulled a sealed bag of frozen chicken out to defrost at approx 7PM and placed it in our kitchen ...
A: The recommendation is to not consume potentially hazardous foods (foods capable of easily supporting ...
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| Canning Jam | 9/24/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I have canned several batches of jam - both peaches and strawberries. I used 1/2 cup less sugar ...
A: Yes, your jams are safe. They may not have the same consistency as jams made with more sugar (to get ...
|
| Old deep-fry oil | 9/24/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: Hey Carol, I seen your answer about when to change oil but I now have a question to your ...
A: Smoking of fresh oil usually indicates it is being heated too high. Have you checked the ...
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| applesauce | 9/23/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: We recently had a power outage that resulted in having to throw out pretty much everything in my ...
A: Applesauce is considered a potentially hazardous food, and should be discarded as well. It may be ...
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| crock pot cooking | 9/23/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: Is it unsafe to put leftover roast and/or potatoes back in the crock pot it cooked in during the day ...
A: Yes and no, if the temperature is always maintained at 140 degrees or above, the food is safe. ...
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| HEALTH HAZARDS OF COOKING OR REHEATING PREPARED FOOD IN PLASTIC BAGS | 9/23/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: I AM LOOKING FOR ANY SCIENTIFIC STUDY THAT CLEARLY STATES THAT HOT FOODS EXPOSED TO PLASTIC BAGS ARE ...
A: The difficulty you will have in what you are looking for is that not all plastic bags are the same. ...
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| Unrefrigerated food items | 9/23/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: My grandson went to school for 8 hours and left the refrigerator door open upon my returning home 3 ...
A: The recommendation is that if foods that normally should be refrigerated are at a temperature above ...
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| chicken with paper | 9/23/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I made chicken tonight and it was not fully thawed out. So I started cooking it with the paper still ...
A: I'm not aware of any problems with consuming the paper that separates chicken. If any bacteria were ...
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| Fully cooked ham left out overnight | 9/22/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I cooked are large bone-in ham last night...it came out of the oven about 10:30 pm. It was too hot ...
A: You are right to be concerned. Protein sources such as ham can readily support the growth of ...
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| Milk temperatures | 9/22/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: We recently lost power for two days. I had 6 1/2 gallons of organic milk from Stonyfield (great ...
A: Unfortunately, the recommendation for milk (soy or animal based) that has been in a refrigerator ...
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| Storing Vacuum Sealed Brisket | 9/21/2008 | Chris Manley |
Q: I have a vacuum sealed brisket purchased before the sell date of July 1, 2008. However, it sat in a ...
A: 6 weeks in the refrigerator is a very long time to store anything in the refrigerator. You are ...
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| Food safety and taste... | 9/20/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: Schlitt, I am starting to operate my own restaurant in a short time. As I count on the words of ...
A: Below is my response to your request: Tomato - chopped in small pieces - used for salad ...
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| Dehydrating Fruit | 9/20/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I am dehydrating peaches. Yesterday I set the timer to go off so I could check my peaches for ...
A: There is a slight risk for bacterial growth but the likelihood is extremely rare. As the pH of ...
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| canned tomatoes | 9/20/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I recently canned 7 quarts of tomatoes. When I pulled them out of the water bath, a small amount of ...
A: Loss of liquid does not cause food to spoil, though the food above the liquid may darken. They are ...
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| shelf life after expiration | 9/19/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: I have a jar of Heinz Chili Sauce. It is unopened. The date on the top is 5/2007. Can I still use ...
A: How are you Sarah? First I would like to apologize for the delay in my response. The expiration ...
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| meatloaf left out | 9/19/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: We made meatloaf last night and forgot to put the leftover in the refrigerator. If we fully reheat ...
A: How are you doing today? First let me apologize for my delay in response. No food should be left out ...
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| Tasty & frseh but till when! | 9/16/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: I am starting to operate my own restaurant in a short time. As I count on the words of experts, your ...
A: How are you doing today? The question you put before me is a good one but I do not have the time to ...
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| Quiche | 9/16/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: I cooked a quiche and refrigerated it. My daughter took it out of the fridge the next day and ...
A: Ed, How are you doing? Most foods are not recommended to be left out for more than two hours. I for ...
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| thermo bags | 9/16/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: I have 2 kids and I prepare their lunch from home. I normally cook food the day before. From school ...
A: Rania, How are you doing? The question would have to be what is the temperature of the food at the ...
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| canned tuna | 9/16/2008 | Carl Copeland |
Q: i have a big can of tunna,im sure that i cant eat the whole can,,the question is.. can i freez ...
A: How are you doing today. You can freeze the tuna for about two months but please be prepared as it ...
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| Sarsaparilla syrup | 9/15/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: I found a 20 something year old bottle of "Dr. R. R. Cornett's Black Bart Sarsaparilla Syrup: Flavor ...
A: The general recommendation for old foods is to not take a chance and do not consume. While it may ...
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| ham safety | 9/14/2008 | Carol Schlitt |
Q: We had some fully cooked vacuum sealed ham slices that have never been opened and we left it in our ...
A: The recommendation is to not consume protein foods that can easily support the growth of bacteria ...
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