Doggie Bag Dilemma: Refrigerate Those Leftovers
Food Has Two-Hour Window From Table To Refrigerator
UPDATED: 5:46 p.m. EST October 30, 2003
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Doggie bags can make dining out twice as nice -- unless you are the one out of every four diners who gets food poisoning from leftovers.
Most people do not realize there is a brief window to get leftovers from the restaurant to the refrigerator.
"It's two hours from the time the meal is served to you -- not when they pack it up and bring it to your table," said
Lynn Hoggard, a registered dietitian at WRAL-TV in Raleigh.
For those who need more time, Hoggard -- a frequent doggie bagger herself -- has some advice.
"I often take along a small cooler with a few plastic bags inside. I just ask the wait staff to put ice in the bags and then I surround these bags by the food."
Doggie-bag food usually has a shorter shelf life than other leftovers. Hoggard said restaurant foods are best eaten within 24 hours.
If the food was served hot, it should be reheated until it is piping hot -- at least 165° Fahrenheit.
A lot of people make the mistake of leaving their leftovers in the car. No matter what the temperature, if the sun is out, the heat it generates will shorten the two-hour window.
Most people do not realize there is a brief window to get leftovers from the restaurant to the refrigerator.
"It's two hours from the time the meal is served to you -- not when they pack it up and bring it to your table," said
Lynn Hoggard, a registered dietitian at WRAL-TV in Raleigh.
For those who need more time, Hoggard -- a frequent doggie bagger herself -- has some advice.
"I often take along a small cooler with a few plastic bags inside. I just ask the wait staff to put ice in the bags and then I surround these bags by the food."
Doggie-bag food usually has a shorter shelf life than other leftovers. Hoggard said restaurant foods are best eaten within 24 hours.
If the food was served hot, it should be reheated until it is piping hot -- at least 165° Fahrenheit.
A lot of people make the mistake of leaving their leftovers in the car. No matter what the temperature, if the sun is out, the heat it generates will shorten the two-hour window.
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