What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight?

What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight? - Calm ethnic woman taking refreshing drink from refrigerator in shop

My girlfriend accidentally didn't close the fridge properly and left it open 2 inches all night (more than 8 hours). I had a lot of raw chicken breast and raw salmon in there. Is it still edible? When I touched the meat, it was slightly colder than room temperature (21 C).

The back part of the meat was still a bit cold though because it was closer to the back of the fridge.

Is it edible?



Best Answer

If the food had reached a temperature of 21 C for an unknown amount of time, you should definitely discard it.

See: How do I know if food left at room temperature is still safe to eat?


As a more general rule, there really is no way to provide a definitive answer; it depends on your specific refrigerator, the cooling power it has, how much air was able to move through the gap, and how much mass was inside the refrigerator to provide a thermal buffer

If you had a refrigerator thermometer and looked at what temperature the interior rose to, if it was below 40 F you are good.

If you don't have a thermometer, you don't know exactly what happened inside.

You must assess how much tolerance for risk you have.




Pictures about "What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight?"

What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight? - Unrecognizable man getting out of yellow car
What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight? - Cheerful multiethnic friends leaving hallway
What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight? - Opened rusty door with metal handle



Quick Answer about "What are the consequences of leaving the fridge door cracked open overnight?"

If the food is all bundled together, it will prevent warm air from circulating around it. – If it is warm in your kitchen and the fridge door is ajar then the food will start to spoil faster. – If it is cool in your kitchen it will take longer for the food to go off.



Troubleshooting a No Cool Fridge - Door Left Open




Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Khoa Võ, Tim Samuel, William Fortunato, Francesco Ungaro