Left a butternut squash out for 8 hours

[Anonymous]

I turned the oven off, meaning to let it cool a little before taking it out, and completely forgot about it. Should I throw it out or is it safe to use?

[Anonymous]

Personally, I'd eat it without worry. But I'm sure the "safe" thing to do is toss it.

[Anonymous]

I'd use it. It's a vegetable, not meat.

[Anonymous]

I'd eat it wouldn't think twice about it.

[Anonymous]

It's fine. Bon appetite!

[Anonymous]

In my first job out of college I knew this German guy who was kind of hyperactive and opinionated. At one point, he had a huge, weekend-long party at his group house where they served mayonnaise-based salads like potato salad, etc. They just left them out on the table for the entire length of the party. I found it completely gross, but he thought it was completely normal. Nobody got sick. He used to laugh about Americans' paranoia about mayonnaise-containing foods.

No bearing on your situation at all. But I'd eat the squash. It's a non-animal product and so would not be expected to harbor much bacteria to begin with, and then was baked at a temperature that would kill anything. So you wouldn't expect many pathogenic bacteria to be growing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my first job out of college I knew this German guy who was kind of hyperactive and opinionated. At one point, he had a huge, weekend-long party at his group house where they served mayonnaise-based salads like potato salad, etc. They just left them out on the table for the entire length of the party. I found it completely gross, but he thought it was completely normal. Nobody got sick. He used to laugh about Americans' paranoia about mayonnaise-containing foods.

No bearing on your situation at all. But I'd eat the squash. It's a non-animal product and so would not be expected to harbor much bacteria to begin with, and then was baked at a temperature that would kill anything. So you wouldn't expect many pathogenic bacteria to be growing.

On this note, my first au pair opened a new jar of mayo and put it back on the pantry shelf...I only found it after it was 1/2 gone, no harm done. We had a good laugh over it, but she said they don't refrigerate mayo at all!

[Anonymous]

OP, I'd eat it.

Ok, my dilemma today - I left beef stew on the counter last night. It had been cook and we had it for dinner. It was in a glass container and sealed. I left it out to cool before putting it in the fridge. Woke up to it this morning still on the counter. Would you eat this? If yes, would you give it to your preschoolers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In my first job out of college I knew this German guy who was kind of hyperactive and opinionated. At one point, he had a huge, weekend-long party at his group house where they served mayonnaise-based salads like potato salad, etc. They just left them out on the table for the entire length of the party. I found it completely gross, but he thought it was completely normal. Nobody got sick. He used to laugh about Americans' paranoia about mayonnaise-containing foods.

No bearing on your situation at all. But I'd eat the squash. It's a non-animal product and so would not be expected to harbor much bacteria to begin with, and then was baked at a temperature that would kill anything. So you wouldn't expect many pathogenic bacteria to be growing.

On this note, my first au pair opened a new jar of mayo and put it back on the pantry shelf...I only found it after it was 1/2 gone, no harm done. We had a good laugh over it, but she said they don't refrigerate mayo at all!

I've read that the celery and onions in potato salad are often the source of salmonella -- not the mayonnaise.

[Anonymous]

Mayo is fine unrefrigerated:

http://www.wvagriculture.org/images/Literature/Mayo%20brochure.pdf

[Anonymous]

I've done that more than once.... If you're concerned reheat in a sauce pan with some chicken stock and heavy cream, once hot puree, return to the sauce pan and add salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste. Amazing as a soup or pasta sauce.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In my first job out of college I knew this German guy who was kind of hyperactive and opinionated. At one point, he had a huge, weekend-long party at his group house where they served mayonnaise-based salads like potato salad, etc. They just left them out on the table for the entire length of the party. I found it completely gross, but he thought it was completely normal. Nobody got sick. He used to laugh about Americans' paranoia about mayonnaise-containing foods.

No bearing on your situation at all. But I'd eat the squash. It's a non-animal product and so would not be expected to harbor much bacteria to begin with, and then was baked at a temperature that would kill anything. So you wouldn't expect many pathogenic bacteria to be growing.

On this note, my first au pair opened a new jar of mayo and put it back on the pantry shelf...I only found it after it was 1/2 gone, no harm done. We had a good laugh over it, but she said they don't refrigerate mayo at all!

I've read that the celery and onions in potato salad are often the source of salmonella -- not the mayonnaise.

I used to work for Publix and had to take extensive food safety training classes. I remember being really surprised by how long mayonnaise stays safe. It's because of the vinegar (or lemon) content. It creates a very inhospitable place for bacteria to try to grow. It will go bad, but it takes longer than most people think.