How can I eat it?

July 16, 2022 8:22 AM

My mom made a delicious herb and olive oil sauce and sent it home with me frozen last Saturday. I forgot to put it in the freezer and it's been in my fridge since then.

I'm definitely eating this sauce, but how can I eat it as safely as possible? I know about the dangers of low acid foods and botulism. I'm assuming I'll have to cook it to make it safe. At what temp? My current plan is to roast some chicken thighs slathered in it but I welcome other ideas.

posted by pumpkinlatte to Food & Drink (8 answers total)

Yum! I personally wouldn't worry about cooking it after a week in the fridge, unopened, from frozen.

But another fun cooked option would be to use it to top a focaccia or bruschetta, or heck even biscuits from a tube.
posted by SaltySalticid at 8:28 AM on July 16, 2022

A week, thawing and then sitting unopened in the fridge? I'd eat it as pasta sauce without hesitation.
posted by DarlingBri at 8:42 AM on July 16, 2022 [6 favorites]

Fat is a preservative too. And it lasts for a really, really long time in the fridge. I've made chimichurri (also an herb and oil sauce) and it's fine to eat raw for at least a month.
posted by ananci at 8:50 AM on July 16, 2022 [2 favorites]

Yeah, if it's been in the fridge you're totally fine. Using it as the marinade for chicken thighs is an excellent idea; roast some veg in it too.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:51 AM on July 16, 2022 [1 favorite]

If it’s fridged it’s fine.
posted by Slinga at 9:04 AM on July 16, 2022

I wouldn’t worry about it at all. Other foods get put in oil to preserve them.
posted by rodlymight at 9:16 AM on July 16, 2022

Personally I wouldn’t be worried about it for this sauce since it was frozen and in the fridge the whole time, and would just eat it with no precautions.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 9:53 AM on July 16, 2022 [1 favorite]

Garlic and/or herbs in oil are a huge source of botulism poisoning, the fat does not, in fact, act as a preservative against anaerobic bacterium. Botulism poisoning is not caused by the bacterium itself, but rather it's waste products, which are a neurotoxin, and do not go away with application of heat.

That said, most restaurants will go with either a 7-day or 10-day fridge life of such a product and I would happily eat it. Just wanted to clear up incorrect information in this thread.
posted by nenequesadilla at 6:30 PM on July 19, 2022 [1 favorite]