Can I eat this cooked ground beef (4 days old)

June 26, 2023 5:09 PM

(My very first Can I Eat This.) Ground beef cooked on Thursday was deeply seasoned (fajita seasoning), cooked to medium/medium-well (no pink), and stored in a refrigerator in a sealed container that was opened once very briefly yesterday (for a few seconds). What says The Green? Thanks
posted by jerome powell buys his sweatbands in bulk only to Food & Drink (17 answers total)

Unless I am misunderstanding this question, I would say you have at least a week to eat it, and even if it did mold it wouldn't be harmful to health. In my opinion.
posted by wnissen at 5:11 PM on June 26, 2023 [11 favorites]

Totally.
posted by tristeza at 5:16 PM on June 26, 2023 [3 favorites]

Yeah, I'd eat that today or Tuesday. Or throw it in the freezer today and re-heat it when you're ready to eat it again.
posted by hydra77 at 5:16 PM on June 26, 2023 [4 favorites]

Why wouldn’t you?
posted by kevinbelt at 5:26 PM on June 26, 2023 [2 favorites]

Yes, this is within the highly conservative USDA guidelines for food safety, eat and enjoy!

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/meat/ground-beef-and-food-safety
(Sorry the link button is broken on my system)
posted by SaltySalticid at 5:51 PM on June 26, 2023 [2 favorites]

I'd eat that with no concern, and I'm on the conservative side on all these questions.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:03 PM on June 26, 2023 [5 favorites]

I'd chow down without a second thought.
posted by synecdoche at 6:09 PM on June 26, 2023 [3 favorites]

stored in a refrigerator in a sealed container that was opened once very briefly yesterday (for a few seconds).

Even if your ground beef was perfectly sterilized by cooking, it would be no more sterile than the container once you put it in there, which is why I prefer stainless steel containers with tight fitting stainless lids that come down over the rims of the containers, because those can be sterilized in advance and sitting on a shelf with a nearly sterile interior when you’re ready to use them for food storage in the fridge.

But if your container was merely reasonably clean you should be perfectly fine the way you did it. A small population of pathogenic organisms wouldn’t have a chance to grow significantly before it got too cold for them in the fridge.
posted by jamjam at 6:11 PM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]

Eat it.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:33 PM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]

If it smells weird, toss it. Otherwise you're fine.
posted by Slinga at 6:56 PM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]

Nthing that it’s totally fine. Eat without hesitation.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 7:06 PM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]

I would eat it, but if you reheat, don't put any leftovers back in the fridge.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 7:13 PM on June 26, 2023

Sure, that sounds fine to me, and I'm usually one to err on the side of caution on these.
posted by Aleyn at 9:01 PM on June 26, 2023

4 days is my limit for quality, but safety is a day or two more.
posted by sacrifix at 9:14 PM on June 26, 2023 [2 favorites]

For anyone wondering what the FDA guidelines are for storing cooked ground beef in the link SaltySalticid posted, they are:

If ground beef is refrigerated promptly after cooking (within 2 hours; 1 hour if the temperature is above 90 °F), it can be safely refrigerated for about 3 or 4 days.

Eat away.
posted by wakannai at 4:50 AM on June 27, 2023

As a Canadian, I am culturally obligated to recommend you cook ground beef to well-done. The very idea of medium-rare ground beef has me looking for a Mountie to tell. And yes, I understand this may not be backed up by science if the beef in question has been ground/cooked/stored properly. BUT STILL!
posted by joelhunt at 5:31 AM on June 27, 2023 [1 favorite]

I eat this all the time.
posted by Lyn Never at 10:08 AM on June 27, 2023