To ask if you ever put stuff in the garden overnight in winter when your fridge is full?

[Owlsintowels]

I do this occasionally, it feels elicit and wrong but logically I think it's fine?

Eg last night. Made a big pot of curry for friends visiting this weekend. Finished cooking at 9.30pm.

I could either put this steaming cauldron in the fridge, put it in numerous sinkfuls of cold water until the core reached something cool, or pop it on the patio in the back garden where the temp was about the same as a fridge, and the supply of extra cold is near infinite.

If I hadn't been going to bed early then I might have brought it in at 11 to move to the fridge, but as it is I left it out overnight

At 7am the temp was ~4.5, that's within the normal range for a fridge, so scientifically I don't see how this could be bad.

Does anyone else do this?

We don't get foxes and it was a big heavy lidded pot, so no wildlife concerns.

AIBU?

We have been known to use outside as an extra drinks fridge.

When I was a student I just kept my milk Etc in a box on the outside windowsill in winter. It was fine and didn’t get nicked like it would in the shared fridge.

I just leave it at room temperature on the cooker or the side, but your way is probably safer.

We have a balcony off the kitchen, so at Xmas when the fridge is heaving I’ve been known to leave stuff out there.

God no.

The foxes would literally turn up with cutlery, napkins and a nice bottle of wine.

Sounds ok but it would have been frozen solid in my area today!

Especially at Christmas. I generally have a big box with a lid that I keep outside for drinks and whatever else is taking up room including sometimes dairy.

I hate it when we have a mild Christmas and the temps are up at 10 degrees. It spoils my storage plans no end.

I keep the Xmas veg and extra wine in the boot of my car over Xmas if there's no room in the fridge. The whole house gets overheated and there's no space in the kitchen, plus it means the wine is already chillex

For beer and wine, yes but not food.

i have done in the past, mainly drinks tho

@WorraLiberty
It's pretty spicy.

Does anyone know if animals can eat spicy food? Not sure I'd want a fox shitting in my garden after 8 portions of hot mutton curry 🤮

I put things in the car in winter, like when we do the big Christmas Eve shop and have about 3 fridges worth of stuff.

Meat and fish in the fridge but drinks, veg, cheese etc in the car, or the brick shed before it was demolished to make way for the extension.

It's just practical and what people used to do before near universal fridges.

That's a great image, Worra!

From a 'fridge' perspective, of course it's fine. Although I would possibly be worried about teeny tiny creepy crawlies getting in through the little gaps between the lid and pot, but I am a bit funny like that; it's not necessarily rational thinking...

I leave the Christmas booze in the garage, but not food.

My dm always uses the shed over Xmas.

I did leave a chilli con carne outside in the garden on a table to cool down. A fox sitting nearby growled at me when I went to bring it back into the house.!

Sometimes I’ve left my shopping in the car until morning in the boot of the car but only if it’s a cold as my fridge outside

I use the car as an outdoor chiller no chance of wildlife then

I have an integral garage which isn't quite as cold as outside but pretty good for chilled drinks. Also if I have to defrost one of the freezers I wait for a nice frosty day so I can put all the food outside.

Yes, especially at Christmas we use the "big fridge" which is technically the shed but often just outside the back door! Drinks go in the big fridge, soup, turkey curry, leaving the indoor fridge for more delicate items wine we don't want to freeze. We're in Scotland so in the winter it's almost always cold enough at night. Plus our garden is Fox-proof so no midnight feasts!

Only drinks - cans and bottles of fizzy drink, bottles of wine, beer etc. If it's really cold or frosty your drinks will be colder than if they had been in the fridge. We also keep root veg in the garage.

@Msvestibule I didn't think on insects. Yuck

Oh well, done now. No children will be eating it, and it'll be thoroughly reheated so anything grizzly will become part of the curry.

Well I dimly remember as small child in 60s having only window ledges/back steps for fridge goods.
I too use a car boot when pushed for space.

Careful not to let fizzy things freeze and pop corks/ring pulls etc. ! (I’ve done this .

Oh yes, all drinks go outside. I also have a a lidded box for Christmas extras - butter, cheese, smoked salmon etc during the run up. V handy.