Please tell me I can still eat this.

October 29, 2014 5:21 AM

I made some vegetarian sloppy Joes for dinner. They were SO. GOOD. Then I left them out on the for 8 hours….Help.

hi MeFites! So I made these veggie sloppy Joes last night. The ingredients in their rough amounts were as follows:

1/2 sweet onion, diced
1-2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 pkg frozen morningstar farms grillers crumbles
several splashes of apple cider vinegar
dash or two of bragg's amino acids
garlic powder
1 can campbell's old fashioned tomato rice soup, condensed
2-ish tablespoons of raw unprocessed sugar


I left it in a broad heavy pan, covered with a glass lid, for approximately 8 hours. There is a good amount of acid in this recipe between the tomato and vinegar, but I'm still apprehensive about eating these now. I put the leftovers in the fridge as soon as I got home. So MeFites, what do you think? Shall I reheat and eat this delicious stuff again, or am I fated to toss it? Thanks!

posted by lettuce dance to Food & Drink (17 answers total)

I would absolutely eat that. It wouldn't even have been an accident if I had left something like that out for hours or overnight, to cool before I put it in the fridge.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:28 AM on October 29, 2014 [3 favorites]

You have my blessing to eat it. I am admittedly a very uncautious eater, but this seems like even fairly nervous types would dig right in. Go for it.
posted by Literaryhero at 5:30 AM on October 29, 2014

eat dat, it'll actually be better for the melding
posted by stinkfoot at 5:31 AM on October 29, 2014

I am not a food safety expert. IANYFSE. Acidic foods keep longer when stuff like this happens. When I make ketchup it sits in a jar, fermenting on the counter top for up to three days. You'll be fine.
posted by brownrd at 5:39 AM on October 29, 2014

I would definitely eat it. But then again, I'm really not concerned about this kind of stuff. When I was growing up, my parents hated to waste food, and my dad used to eat quite horrible things that he would find in the back of the 'fridge. He's still alive and well.
posted by alex1965 at 5:45 AM on October 29, 2014 [3 favorites]

I leave vegetarian food of this ilk out overnight ("on purpose"/because we're lazy) all the time - we left a whole tray of lasagne out last night, for instance - and I've never made myself sick.

This sounds really good. Eat it!
posted by terretu at 5:46 AM on October 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I've cooked and eaten grillers crumblers that I forgot I bought and left in my car over the course of a (hot, summer) day and night. I think you're fine.
posted by lesli212 at 5:47 AM on October 29, 2014

Chow down!
posted by DarlingBri at 5:50 AM on October 29, 2014

Best answer: If you don't eat it, I will.
posted by escape from the potato planet at 5:52 AM on October 29, 2014 [9 favorites]

I would definitely eat it.
posted by neushoorn at 5:53 AM on October 29, 2014

I think it's safe to eat it, so go ahead. If you die, then I won't eat any.

By reading this comment, you agree to assume all risks from eating this food, including death, and agree to hold me harmless.
posted by tckma at 6:10 AM on October 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

The fact that you're asking this question makes me think you may be less cavalier about food safety than a lot of us (I'd eat it). If this is the case and eating it is going to cause you to worry, or to spend the next several hours thinking every stomach twinge is a sign of impending gastric doom, that's pretty much the only reason I'd say NOT to eat it. Delicious as it sounds, it probably isn't worth the worry.

If I'm wrong, though, and the answers here are enough to allieviate your concerns, then by all means dig in (and thanks for the recipe!).
posted by DingoMutt at 6:15 AM on October 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

Eat it.
posted by Room 641-A at 7:24 AM on October 29, 2014

I would totally eat it, but like DingoMutt says, if it's going to bug you all day/week after you eat it, don't bother, the deliciousness isn't worth the anxiety. When I have food that I'm slightly worried about, I try to be conscientious about reheating it all the way really hot, and not just getting it vaguely warm in the microwave.
posted by aimedwander at 7:39 AM on October 29, 2014

I have eaten cooked chicken that was left out on the countertop, covered, for 19 hours. I was fine. I would eat this without hesitation.
posted by Solomon at 8:27 AM on October 29, 2014

Totally fine. /lifelong vegetarian and leaver-outer of food.
posted by klangklangston at 8:59 AM on October 29, 2014

Response by poster: Thanks guys! Chow down I shall!
posted by lettuce dance at 10:07 AM on October 29, 2014 [1 favorite]