Letting meat sit out

[Idunno]

What’s your opinion on this:

I live in a very small studio apartment 

no refrigerator because I don’t want extra electric outlets plugged in

so i grocery shop every 2 days or so

i will leave meats out for 24 hours before cooking and never had any problems 

Also i will cook steaks and leave them out in open air for a day and they seem to improve in taste and texture 

everyone screams how steaks are all bacteria unless they are refrigerated but wtf did people do before Refrigeration was invented?

just to push the limits further:

I never refrigerate eggs. I will keep them room temp for 1-2 weeks and no problems whatsoever 

I will make hardboiled eggs and at room temp they are good for one week

These are plain truths. 
you won’t die from eating a leftover steak at room temp 

you won’t get salmonella from eggs at room temp 

Edited February 20 by Idunno

[Idunno]

My apt is super tiny and in a highly desirable neighborhood with many grocery stores 

to be clear we are talking 12’x10’ apartment. So to bring a fridge in would be no room for that!

the only way a fridge would be an option is if it was 1’ maximum, and no electric noise at all 

otherwise a lot of my time is in grocery stores getting fresh meats 

[Scott F.]

This a conversation I have had with my buddy several times.

As a kid we ate every Sunday at my grandma's house. Mostly everything was fried. I can remember the leftovers (chicken, pork chops, burgers, etc.) sitting on the stove for the rest of the day. And a lot of times they were breakfast the next day. 

His grandma did not refrigerate her mayonnaise. She kept it in the cupboard, even after opened. They had a part of the house that was called the back porch (but was actually closed in) and they hung meat from the ceiling.

When we bring eggs in from the pen they are on the counter for a couple three days (usually eaten by then). 

I will say your process is less wasteful. We never let food sit on our counter and go bad. We put it in a container, stick it in the refrigerator and wait for it to go bad there. LOL

Like most things, it is an individual approach. If it works for you, then it works for you. The world survived for a while before the refrigerator was a thing. At one point we hunted for food daily, it lasted a couple three days and we hunted some more. You are 'hunting' the same but at the grocery store. 

Scott

[Orweller]

Eggs are no problem to leave out, IF they're fresh from the farm or coup. Once they are refrigerated, don't un-refrigerate them. 

I give meat 2 hours, then it's going back in the fridge, a second later? I won't eat it anymore. What can I say, I am rather dull. 

[Mesa_John]

There is this set of critters on planet earth called bacteria.  That stuff loves to eat our food and it tends to replicate and give off toxins that our body isn't fond of.  Matter of fact, it will even eat our food in the refrigerator (that's why things in a frig spoil in a week or two).  When you eat stuff that has been left out for long periods of time, you are rolling the dice.  Now, there are certain things that have built-in protections.  If it is cured with salt and maybe even smoked, it repels bacteria for a significant period of time.  If it is acidic, it will repel bacteria and be good for a while.

Generally speaking, I own a frig and pay the electricity bill ....... so, I use it.

Our one exception is butter.  The wife has a Butter Bell, which is a spectacular invention and I have constant access to soft, creamy butter.

 

 

Edited February 20 by Mesa_John

[Scott F.]

This is true. But bacteria and bugs and such are in everything.

Go to the store and buy the finest meat or chicken you can find. Bring it home, freeze it as is or wash it, re-package and freeze. When it is frozen solid, for even weeks on end, pull the plug on the freezer but do not open the lid for two weeks. 

When you open the lid can anyone explain where the maggots come from?

I guess I sort of roll the dice. LOL

 

Scott

[Geezy]

21 hours ago, Idunno said:

i will leave meats out for 24 hours before cooking and never had any problems 

Sounds like you are playing food poisoning roulette. I take it you’ve never had good poisoning?  If you ever get it you’ll go buy a small dormitory size fridge. 
 

 

21 hours ago, Idunno said:

everyone screams how steaks are all bacteria unless they are refrigerated but wtf did people do before Refrigeration was invented?

It’s not the refrigeration that kills bacteria it can only prevent it from growing. It’s the cooking process that kills the bacteria. You might get away with that on steaks or roasts but don’t try it with ground meat. On steaks the bacteria is on the surface so it’s killed easily by the heat of cooking but with ground meat the bacteria can be mixed into the meat and requires that it be cooked to 160° or higher. 
Before refrigeration early man would eat as much of the kill as he could stuff in himself and then salt, smoke and dry the meat to prevent bacteria from forming as soon as possible. In later times man had learned many different ways of preserving meats with salting, drying, curing and making sausages. 
In the days of the industrial revolution they ate a lot of rancid meats and got sick a lot. Many developed a tolerance for the spoiled meats probably by evolving to have a stronger stomach acid. This is why ketchup and steak sauces were invented to cover up the taste of the rancid meats. 

 

21 hours ago, Idunno said:

I never refrigerate eggs. I will keep them room temp for 1-2 weeks and no problems whatsoever 

As has already been said, you can leave them out for weeks if they have not been washed and that’s how they do it in Europe and other countries but here in America they are washed so the protective bloom has been removed and once that happens bacteria can penetrate the shell to contaminate the egg if it isn’t refrigerated. 
 

 

21 hours ago, Idunno said:

you won’t die from eating a leftover steak at room temp 

Likely true but if you ever get food poisoning you might wish you could die. I’ve had it twice and it’s extremely terrible. 
 

 

21 hours ago, Idunno said:

you won’t get salmonella from eggs at room temp

Haha, yeah…don’t bet on it because it can certainly happen. 
 

You do you man and if it’s working for ya then carry on but I believe you are playing a chancy game here. 

[Orweller]

1 hour ago, Geezy said:

if you ever get food poisoning you might wish you could die. I’ve had it twice and it’s extremely terrible. 

Absolutely. Even if the chances are a slow as getting hit by lightning... when you do get it, it ain't pretty. 

I recall when I had food poisoning back in 2018. Also known as Poopalooza 2018. 

Never again. The bathroom was a crime scene. It was pure fallout. I saw myself die a few times. I had to exorcise that room when it was all said and done. 

[Idunno]

For decades Ive been leaving store bought eggs at room temps up to 1-2 weeks and never had a problem 

when I cook plain steak it’s usually enough to put leftovers out. I will leave a cooked steak at room temp for up to 24 hours and honestly it tastes a lot better after 24 hours in the open air. Like a beef jerky

i leave sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature for 1-2 weeks with no problem.

how are you getting food poisoning?

yea I’ve had food poisoning a few times. Always from restaurants.

I’ve never had food poisoning from my own cooking at home.

[Qapla]

17 hours ago, Idunno said:

For decades Ive been leaving store bought eggs at room temps up to 1-2 weeks and never had a problem

 

Since you do not have your location listed, we have no idea where you are buying your eggs. In Mexico, they sell them at room temperature because they don't wash them. The same is true of other countries. In the US, "store bought" eggs are washed and stocked in the store refrigerated because the protective layer on the outside of the eggs has been removed, allowing bacteria to penetrate the shell. Even boiling eggs does not restore that protective layer, and you are taking a chance leaving them out.

Maybe you have adapted to tainted eggs and meat and that is why you are not getting sick ... the rest of us will most likely bring our own food if you ever invite us to dinner.

[Geezy]

For decades Ive been leaving store bought eggs at room temps up to 1-2 weeks and never had a problem 
when I cook plain steak it’s usually enough to put leftovers out. I will leave a cooked steak at room temp for up to 24 hours and honestly it tastes a lot better after 24 hours in the open air. Like a beef jerky
i leave sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature for 1-2 weeks with no problem.
how are you getting food poisoning?
yea I’ve had food poisoning a few times. Always from restaurants.
I’ve never had food poisoning from my own cooking at home.

I don’t know why you are getting away with it but hey, if it’s working for you then carry on man. I just know I’m not going to chance it.
Good luck.


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[Idunno]

Nah I have went over this with plenty of people. Store bought eggs (=places like Wholes Foods or Trader Joe’s) can be left at room temperature for 1 week or more and there’s no problem ever, especially if you crack the egg and the yolk is in tact still

if the eggs stink bad or are noticeably off in appearance then I would toss that but that happens so rarely 

same thing with hard boiled eggs. They are good for 3-5 days left out at room temperature.