Question I placed muscadines in a galvanized aluminum bucket for almost 24 hours until I cooked them for jelly. My mother cautioned me that acidic foods would have a reaction with the bucket and could cause a food safety problem. Is this true? Is the jelly safe to eat? The fruit was rinsed well before cooking. Thanks.
Answer Galvanized metals should not be used for the storage of moist or acidic foods. At best the food will have a metallic taste or odor, at worst, enough of the metal (usually zinc) will be dissolved into the food to make you sick. The risk would be lower if the grapes were not yet crushed, and rinsed well prior to cooking, the safe thing to do would be to throw them out, and start over with a plastic or stainless steel container.
