It is generally not safe to eat food that has been left in a car overnight, or for an extended period of time. Food left in a car can reach temperatures that are conducive to bacterial growth, which can cause food poisoning.
According to food safety experts at H-E-B, perishable food can stay safely unrefrigerated for two hours if the air temperature is under 90 degrees and only for one hour if the temperature is 90 degrees or higher. This is true for foods transported in a car or bag or when you're having a picnic or a barbecue outside.
Be aware that frigid temperatures can cause fruit or vegetables to freeze or discolor. If it's cold outside but not below freezing, you can keep your chilled food in your car overnight. The temperature should be around zero degrees for frozen food to remain edible.
Two hours is the limit for keeping food safe outside the refrigerator or freezer; one hour if the outside temperature is 90 °F ( 32.2 °C) or above.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, meat should never be left unrefrigerated for more than two hours. If you're shopping on a particularly warm day, above 90 degrees, that figure gets cut in half to 60 minutes or less.
Food can take over one hundred real hours to spoil when left in the refrigerator while it is cold and powered. Spoiled items cannot be consumed and do not despawn when loading the save. They can be burned in the garbage barrel or disposed of in the compost box.
Rather than something that would melt, stick with snack food like chips, pretzels, crackers or nuts that won't be affected by the heat inside your car. If you're going somewhere with refrigerated items in hot weather, make sure to pack a cooler with some ice so you can keep it cool as long as possible.
The Department of Agriculture recommends that meat never be left unrefrigerated for longer than 2 hours—but that gets cut to just an hour when the temperature reaches 90° F. And bacteria continue to thrive until temperatures reach about 140° F, according to the USDA.
Eating chicken that's been sitting out for some time is risky as it may lead to food poisoning. Some unpleasant symptoms include headaches, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. See a doctor if any of these symptoms persist for more than 12 to 24 hours.
The Two-Hour Rule
Havern explains: "The maximum amount of time perishable foods can [spend] in the danger zone is two hours. At two hours, the food must be consumed, stored correctly, or thrown away. This includes all cooked leftovers, [chopped] fruits and vegetables, meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products."
The best plan is to put leftovers in the refrigerator right after your meal. Food that is sitting out for a party or picnic should be chilled after two hours at typical room temperature. If it's above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) or more, food should not sit out for more than one hour.
When you are serving or displaying cold foods, they can be kept outside the fridge for up to four hours. If any food is left after this time, you should either: throw it away. put it back into the fridge.
Perishable food can stay safely unrefrigerated only for two hours if the air temperature is under 90 degrees – and only for one hour if the temperature is 90 degrees or higher.
Registered dietitian Fawziah Saleh, MS, RDN, LD, says that's not a good idea. “Perishable foods like pizza are not safe to eat if left sitting out in room temperature overnight.”
If boiled rice or pasta are left out at 12-14o C for a long time (more than 4-6 hours), it can become extremely dangerous to eat. At this temperature the spore producing bacteria can form heat resistant toxins. Rice and pasta leftovers must therefore always be cooled rapidly and kept in the fridge at below 6-8o C.
If raw chicken has been left out at room temperature for 24 hours or more, it is not safe to consume and should be discarded to prevent the risk of foodborne illness.
Eating curry kept for long hours after cooking may cause food poisoning due to bacterium called Welch bacillus. In addition to curry, food cooked using a large pan, such as stew and nikujaga (stewed meat and potatoes), may cause food poisoning in many cases.
Reheating food may not make it safe. If food is left out too long, some bacteria, such as staphylococcus aureus (staph), can form a heat-resistant toxin that cooking can't destroy.
If a perishable food (such as meat or poultry) has been left out at room temperature overnight (more than two hours) it may not be safe. Discard it, even though it may look and smell good. Never taste a food to see if it is spoiled. Use a food thermometer to verify temperatures.
Meat, Poultry, and Fish
Unless you're interested in inviting an angry mob of bacteria into your body, don't leave any of these in the sun for more than an hour—or two if at room temperature. Meat, poultry, and fish are all definitely subject to the two-hour rule—and if we're talking barbecues, be extra cautious.
No. The removal of oxygen from a food package does not eliminate microbial growth. Perishable (whether it is raw or cooked) meats and poultry in vacuum packaging cannot be stored at room temperature. They must be kept either in the refrigerator at 40 ºF or below, or for longer storage, in the freezer at 0 °F or below.
No, it is not recommended to leave bread in a hot car; the ideal environment for storing bread is at a cool room temperature. If the car's temperature is excessively hot, this can cause the bread to go stale and even grow mold. The heat can also cause the bread to dry out more quickly and make it unappealing to eat.
We have specific guidelines about leaving food out without any temperature controls. The FDA has a general rule that without any temperature controls, food must be discarded after four hours in situations like this. So, before the four hours, it is safe to consume.