Is This Still Safe To Eat?

[iheartmickey1111]

Here's what happened: went to costco at 8pm and bought $25 worth of chicken breasts... 5 hours later I remembered it was still in the trunk (assumed my husband grabbed it).

I'm thinking probably toss it... anyone know if it would still be safe to eat? We live in Idaho and so by 8pm it wasn't hot anymore, maybe 75* in the trunk though? When I took it out, some of the chicken breasts still felt chilled, some felt room temp.

Man oh man, what a waste

 

[NMAmy]

No way I'd take a chance and eat that chicken.

 

[cornflake]

You're asking if it's safe to eat chicken that was in 80 or so degree heat for 5 hours?

I don't think you're really asking, I think you're just mad at losing the $, which I totally understand but... you're not really asking that question, heh, because the idea...

 

[AnnaS]

Oh no - throw it out.

 

[deegack]

I live by the if you have to ask it probably no method

 

[Allison]

No it is not safe to eat.

 

[2goofycampers]

No, I'd toss it.

 

[mombrontrent]

Definatly toss it!

 

[bdcp]

Yuck. Chicken goes bad very quickly. If any of them felt room temp as you said, they were already too warm. Toss them.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

If the chicken is over 40 degrees it is not safe to eat. Now whether you get sick or not remains to be seen however I would not eat it.

Chicken spoils so fast....

 

[marmalade]

I am very laid back when it comes to what is safe to eat, but even I would toss that. Blah, the thought of slimy raw chicken festering in a hot trunk for 5hrs is even too much for me.

 

[Minnesota!]

were they frozen chx breasts or fresh? if fresh, I would toss them. And I am extremely lax about that kind of stuff. But I don't screw around with chicken or fish that might be tainted.

If they were frozen, I would treat them as thawed and cook them all up and then refreeze for later purposes.

 

[cluvsdisney]

were they frozen chx breasts or fresh? if fresh, I would toss them. And I am extremely lax about that kind of stuff. But I don't screw around with chicken or fish that might be tainted.

If they were frozen, I would treat them as thawed and cook them all up and then refreeze for later purposes.

This is what I was thinking. I would do the smell test before you cook it up and start with one piece just to be sure. But if you know you would have a hard time eating it - just toss it.

 

[Beezle2]

Yeah, I'd be tossing that chicken 5 hours is too long to take a chance on it. If it had been an hour or so it might have been salvagable but nope, too long.

Bummer!

 

[Janepod]

NO! No way!

 

[Coconut36]

You're asking if it's safe to eat chicken that was in 80 or so degree heat for 5 hours?

I don't think you're really asking, I think you're just mad at losing the $, which I totally understand but... you're not really asking that question, heh, because the idea...

I agree. I totally understand you are upset but yeah no..you can't eat that chicken.

 

[DreamnDisney]

Throw it out!!! You could probably tell jut by the color and smell!

 

[leebee]

Rule of thumb (agreed on by both the chef and the food microbiologist in the family) is that 4 hours at room temp is really the maximum you should stretch this. However... did they still feel cool? Do they look funny or smell? Were they frozen to start with? (if so, cook them now and smell/taste- don't refrigerate or freeze them).

It's really a crap shoot at this point. It's all a question of whether or not they were bacterially contaminated to begin with, what kind of bacteria, whether the bacteria produce a toxin or not, etc. If you REALLY want to use them, wash each individually in a 5% bleach solution and then boil them. Check for smell/taste, and use them quickly, in sandwiches or casseroles... but honestly? I'D PITCH THE CHICKEN (and I'm usually pretty laid back about these kinds of things.)

 

[mhsjax]

Rule of thumb (agreed on by both the chef and the food microbiologist in the family) is that 4 hours at room temp is really the maximum you should stretch this. However... did they still feel cool? Do they look funny or smell? Were they frozen to start with? (if so, cook them now and smell/taste- don't refrigerate or freeze them).

It's really a crap shoot at this point. It's all a question of whether or not they were bacterially contaminated to begin with, what kind of bacteria, whether the bacteria produce a toxin or not, etc. If you REALLY want to use them, wash each individually in a 5% bleach solution and then boil them. Check for smell/taste, and use them quickly, in sandwiches or casseroles... but honestly? I'D PITCH THE CHICKEN (and I'm usually pretty laid back about these kinds of things.)

I am always questioning myself on if something is safe, (49 years old and never poisoned anyone) But man it would be nice to have your situation, a built in google of safety. lol. Seriously, I have probably wasted a ton of money throwing away something that was not anywhere near going bad, just me being paranoid. It would be really nice to have someone with all that info inside their heads.

 

[AlwaysMoving]

From a budget point of view, which is worse?

1) A loss of $25 worth of chicken
2) The cost of an emergency room visit times the number of people who ate bad chicken.