How long for chicken?

[Cobblersandhogwash]

I cooked chicken in the slow cooker late Friday night. It cooled throughout the night.

I let it cool down until Saturday linch and then put it in the fridge. It's been in there since then.

Will it be okay to eat it on Monday night? Or a bit risky?

I wouldn't eat it. Chicken is the one thing you dont let 'ccol down though the night'. You've effectively let chicken fester in a warm enviroment for over 12 hours

When exactly did you cook it and then how long did it sit out of the fridge for?

You cooked it Friday night and put it in the fridge Saturday lunch?! I wouldn't touch it, that's way to long for chicken to not be properly refrigerated and I'm not really fussy with what I'd eat.

Hell no. Chicken should be refrigerated ASAP. Within a couple of hours.

That’s bonkers. Surely you know the basics of food hygiene? Are you quite young?

Dear God no, that's a recipe for food poisoning! If it was in the slow cooker from Friday evening to Saturday lunchtime that's far too long. I'm quite relaxed about food safety but no way on earth would I be eating that.

It cooked for four hours from midnight to I assume 4am. Then the slow cooker then switches to keep hot mode.

I turned it off at 7am. Let it cool before I put it in the fridge. It takes a good three hours to cool.

I didn't think one should put hot/warm food in the fridge? It should cool first?

I agree that you should be careful with chicken but the science here is that the slow cooker has effectively sterilised the food. So as long as you didn't open the lid and stir the contents, it should still be sterile.

Sounds mad I know but I grew up in a hot country and my mum did this with soups etc. They were always fine.

It sat out of the fridge for 5-6 hours?
Was it in the slow cooker? That would stop it cooling.
@ilovewinterpansies that’s not true. Slow cooking didn’t sterilise the food. It cooked it. There is a danger temperature when food is heating up or cooling down when the nasty stuff that causes food poisoning ( and can’t be killed by heating) grows.

Don't touch!
Last time I let chicken cool really slowly like that I didn't touch it but DP did and he was sick as a dog

So when you cook chicken and want to refrigerate it after cooking, when do you refrigerate it? Whilst it's still warm?

@Wolfiefan is that because a slow cooker doesn't get hot enough?

This definitely works for hob food where it's been at a rolling boil. It's the same theory behind tinned food and jars.

The food in my slow cooker is often scalding hot

I wouldn't have it cooling in a warm environment still..
At room temp until cool enough for the fridge

Eating chicken 4 days later? Absolutely no way!

Tinned food and jars are different from what you do at home.
Cooking food doesn’t sterilise it.

You cooked it (or kept it at a safe temperature) til 7 and refrigerated it at 12? Or after 3 hours, I.e. 10?
If it was removed from the slow cooker and kept in a cool kitchen til 10, I would probably eat it. If it was cooled very slowly, still in the slow cooker til 12, then I wouldn't. It's all to do with how long it was kept in the 'warm' cooling stage.

As long as the slow cooker stays closed I’m very happy to cool it in there till it’s room temperature then put it in the fridge. Or even leave it and room temp for hours before popping it in the fridge. Especially if it’s going to be reheated before eating. Never had any bad consequences.

Cooking food does sterilise it. Anything that's boiling tor some time is technically sterilised (hence how baby bottle sterilisers work).

It's also how home made jam is made, without sterilising it it would go mouldy, but many people successfully make jam at home. It's the same as what's done in factories but on a smaller scale.

It's opening a lid or stirring which introduces bacteria. Before this, all bacteria inside the food has been killed.

The only thing I'm not sure of is whether or not slow cookers get hot enough. Boiling food on a hob definitely gets sterilised.

@ilovewinterpansies
Sterilising empty baby bottles or jam jars isn’t like cooking food.
Check out myth 8!
www.foodsafety.gov/keep/basics/myths/index.html

@Wolfiefan I agree with that but in the instance of a heated sealed vessel the food is sterilised inside and as long as it's not opened it'll remain sterile.

This is how it works with baby jars (roast chicken dinner etc) and things like Ella's pouches spaghetti bolognese etc.

But I totally appreciate the same may not apply for a slow cooker as it may not be a reliable seal and perhaps not hot enough.

A pan on the hob or a slow cooker aren’t a sealed vessel.
Please don’t give potentially dangerous advice.

Nah, wouldn't risk it.

I don't think I am giving dangerous advice. I said I'm unsure of the slow cooker heat issue so not sure how it applies here.

My mother used to boil stews and soups on the hob (including chicken ones) and if left untouched and then heated through thoroughly before eating it was fine sitting out for 24-48 hours. This was in a sub tropical climate with temperatures of 25C plus (often 30).

Just sharing my experience. I do think that people are overly cautious these days with food, this is what contributes to a lot of food waste.

Your mother did it and you didn’t die.
Doesn’t mean it’s safe.