Expert: Carol Schlitt - 7/5/2007

Question
My husband grilled a pork tenderloin last night for about 2.5 hours, then left it out overnight.  Can reheating the meat to internal temp of 170 (or whatever is well done for pork) kill any harmful bacteria and make it safe to eat?  It's just so much meat to throw away!
Thanks, Julie

Answer
Hi Julie,

Unfortunately, we do not recommend heating and eating meat that has been left at room temperature for over 2 hours.

While it would seem that if you only reheat the food it would be safe, this is not always the case. Some bacteria product a toxin, waste product, that is not deactivated by heat.  

So until we have a definitive way of knowing if meat that has been sitting out at room temperature for an extended period of time is still safe, we will recommend that food that has sat out for more than 2 hours at room temperature (1 hour at temperatures over 90 degrees) not be consumed.

Sorry...

Carol