To eat a chilli I made just before coming down with stomach bug?

[FrizzyMcFrizzface]

And feeding it to my family?

Don't know what to do. Don't want to waste it but am worried it's carrying virus/bacteria.

Made it at tea time, tasted, stirred with same spoon etc then froze it. Do all viruses/bacteria die if I defrost and then nuke it in the microwave? Is there anyone who has scientific knowledge of this?

Or do I throw it away?

Anyone with "scientific knowledge" will tell you to throw it away. Those of us who like to live on the edge will suggest nuking. I personally would go with hot oven but that's because I'm old-fashioned

Hmm. I don't know. Is it worth the pain if your family go down with same bug? I might be over sensitive as just got over a stomach bug at 35 weeks pregnant (grim).

I'd rather waste the chilli than risk spending the next few days dealing with and cleaning up after puking pooing children.

I'm very much of the "nuke it, it'll be fine" variety, but I would bin the chilli.

Could the virus survive the freezing process would be my question. I'm not sure but it'S probably googable.

I'd bin it too, that's a risk not worth taking unless you all fancy being sick toghether.

I'm pretty relaxed when it comes to this kind of thing, but I think even I would bin it. Just not worth the risk. I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that freezing food doesn't kill bacteria (don't know about viruses), it just stops them from multiplying to toxic levels. It's cooking the food afterwards that kills any nasties. I could be wrong though.

Don't think of it as wasting a meal... but rather, saving money on medication, loo roll, washing powder, bleach and time off work.

Do u all live together? If so won't they have been exposed to it already? So they either are immune or incubating it right now and will be coming down with it any day now!

See this is why you shouldn't taste with the stirring spoon

Viruses you don't get from food, bacteria will survive freezing but won't grow any more whilst in the freezer, cooking/nuking kills most types but there's a few that can evade it but I assume it was cooked when you ate it last time, bacteria from food can affect you from a few hours after eating up to several days even weeks in rare cases after eating depending on the type of bacteria and how much bacteria so it might not necessarily be the chilli or could be a virus you got from somewhere else. As long as the meat looked and smelled fine before you cooked it and it's properly cooked I'd probably eat it but I'm very casual about it (except raw chicken!) despite doing microbiology and have never got ill so far!

I think the OP was worried about the possibility of the virus that caused her to be ill may have been transferred to the food when she tasted it (as presumably she was between getting the infection and showing symptoms), and which may survive through freezing and cooking to make her family ill. I don't think she thought that the food itself made her ill, or there wouldn't be a question of feeding it to her children, regardless of how long it's cooked for.

Highest incidents of "food poisoning" are from people getting the norovirus and preparing food for others. So bacteria are not even a factor here.

And considering most stomach bugs are some strain or other of norovirus and norovirus is one of the cleverest all temperature, all terrain, still-surviving-after-armegeddon viruses there is, I would throw the chilli away.