Can I eat it filter: Wellshire Farms Bacon Bits and a summer night out

August 25, 2016 4:46 AM

"Refrigerate after opening" bacon bits spend 6 hours at 74 degrees: can I put them back in the fridge and continue to use them indefinitely (or over the next few weeks)?

I stumbled into the kitchen this morning to discover that our tasty little packet of Wellshire Farms Bacon Bits spent the night (or about 6 hours) next to the coffee grinder and not in the fridge.

I don't think they are shelf-stable, as my Whole Foods sells them in the refrigerated section and the package says to refrigerate after opening.

Dumping them all into a giant omelet this morning would be delicious, but it is not an option. Sigh.

Thanks in advance, oh wise ones!

posted by metarkest to Food & Drink (10 answers total)

Best answer: Is the packet open?
posted by Too-Ticky at 4:53 AM on August 25, 2016

Best answer: I would eat this.
posted by Karaage at 4:57 AM on August 25, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: This would fall into "next day counter pizza" category for me, which is to say I would venture to eat it the next day but I wouldn't keep it hanging around for a week to nosh on little by little.
posted by drlith at 5:10 AM on August 25, 2016 [9 favorites]

I would cook them all properly now, and then stick em in the fridge, perhaps in a tupperware container to use over the coming few days.
posted by urbanwhaleshark at 5:21 AM on August 25, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: It says "refrigerate after opening" but it does not say when to refrigerate. Bacon bits? I would put this in the frig and eat at will.
posted by AugustWest at 6:05 AM on August 25, 2016

6 hours on a table would be about the same amount of time they would spend at a catered event. Toss them in the fridge and enjoy.
posted by xingcat at 6:11 AM on August 25, 2016

Yeah, I'd eat that. I'd probably try to get it knocked out in the next week, but bacon is pretty much the definition of "cured".
posted by jferg at 6:13 AM on August 25, 2016

I would eat them but I wouldn't feed them to anyone else without disclosing the time spent un-refrigerated.
posted by juliplease at 8:18 AM on August 25, 2016 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Is the packet open?

Oh, this is an important element: it is.

Mr metarkest apparently intended to put some in the salad he prepared for my lunch today, but I have discovered there are none in my salad. This is minorly sad on so many levels!
posted by metarkest at 8:45 AM on August 25, 2016

Best answer: The label says they are ~2% salt (which despite the preservative free claim of the label is a preservative). And while that isn't enough for long term unrefrigerated storage I wouldn't hesitate to eat these.
posted by Mitheral at 8:57 AM on August 25, 2016 [1 favorite]