oh no! chicken broth, turned off crockpot overnight...(safe?)

[aldensmom09]

yesterday i put on a crock pot of chicken broth (water, vinegar, chicken back, veggies). it was boiling for about 5 hours, and then when i went to bed i meant to turn it down to low (it had been on high) but i turned it right off! i usually boil my broths for about a day. i didn't know what to do this morning when i realized my mistake so i just turned it back to high and its been boiling again all day.

soooo....

would you toss it? i mean technically it IS chicken, and it was just sitting out all night, slowly cooling from boiling to just warm/hot (probably at some good temperatures for bacterial growth, i'd expect)

or would you think it is OK, given that the chicken was likely totally cooked before the crockpot was turned off, it was never uncoveredm and any bacteria would have been killed by me boiling it all day today?

man, i just hate to toss out a whole (big) pot of broth, but on the other hand i'd rather not get sick. uugghh.

[SandraMort]

YES YES YES, I would throw it out!!!  I wouldn't even feed it to my cats.  BLECH.  Sorry :(

[oiseau]

I would totally keep it. There was just another thread posted about this yesterday.

I regularly leave my broth out overnight to cool and I've never had any problems. I've lived in countries where leftovers are left out and reheated as needed since they generally have teeny refrigerators.

(Full disclosure: That being said, there's apparently an issue that despite killing the bacteria by re-boiling the broth, toxins from the bacteria can chill in there and cause food poisoning.)

I'd keep it and eat it, but you'll have to decide your comfort level.

[applecider]

Originally Posted by oiseau 

I would totally keep it. There was just another thread posted about this yesterday.

I regularly leave my broth out overnight to cool and I've never had any problems. I've lived in countries where leftovers are left out and reheated as needed since they generally have teeny refrigerators.

(Full disclosure: That being said, there's apparently an issue that despite killing the bacteria by re-boiling the broth, toxins from the bacteria can chill in there and cause food poisoning.)

I'd keep it and eat it, but you'll have to decide your comfort level.

This.

[prancie]

If it were me I'd keep it.  I've turned my stock off some nights and fired it up again in the morning before.  I know what the food police think, but one can get food poisoning so many different ways I just don't fret about it in general.  

[2xy]

The veggies and chicken back are worth what, a dollar or two? Not worth getting sick for, IMO. Yeah, I hate throwing away food, but I hate food poisoning much more, and I'm not willing to risk feeding tainted broth to my family. Time is money, and missing work and other activities due to illness would be worse than tossing some broth in the trash.

[Drummer's Wife]

Originally Posted by 2xy 

The veggies and chicken back are worth what, a dollar or two? Not worth getting sick for, IMO. Yeah, I hate throwing away food, but I hate food poisoning much more, and I'm not willing to risk feeding tainted broth to my family. Time is money, and missing work and other activities due to illness would be worse than tossing some broth in the trash.

I agree.  It wouldn't be worth the risk to me. 

[aldensmom09]

well i strained it and put in in jars and am now still not sure if i want to consume it.

DARN! well, the good thing is that i'll be far more careful in the future.

unfortunately, it was more like $10 of chicken (pastured free range from my farmer) which sucks as that's the broth $ for the month...

oiseau, i know, i spent a year in kenya and tanzania and most north americans would be shocked. i need to look into the bacterial toxin stuff. i remember that from microbiology, and i know some species produce metabolites that are toxic to us (and heat resistant), and some do not. except for that issue, i wouldn't be worried at all, as i've cooked the heck out of it both before and after turning it off. i'm tempted to keep it and just try it myself first... i dunno.

thanks very much for your input ladies.

[2xy]

On second thought, maybe it would be okay under the circumstances you describe. Check out this page.

[SwanValkyrie]

If it were me (and it certainly has been) I would just put it in a pot and boil it, then skim off any scummy stuff that comes to the top. I have done this many times before, we have never ever gotten sick from it. Things I have gotten sick from: peanuts from a can, shellfish from the store. Totally cooked chicken and boiled broth? Not even on my worried about list.

[aldensmom09]

thanks so much for the input ladies, i'm feeling way better about it now.

swan, would you re-boil it after straining and skimming off fat? or would the final day of boiling (after the night of being turned off) be enough?

[prancie]

NOTE: This is the my husband commenting. He makes fermented foods, and has several meat and food science texts.

Pathogens requires a specific set of conditions to remain viable and dangerous. Stock (and fermented foods such as sausages) creates an environment that suppress harmful bacteria. Boiling inactivates 99+ % of bacteria; that's why boiled water is safe. Salt suppresses bacterium. Herbs suppress bacterium. Garlic suppresses Staph. A, Clostidium, Salmonella, E.Coli, and Campylobacter, while and bay, sage, oregano, and rosemary all suppress botulism. Lowering PH (adding lemon juice or vinegar) also tends to suppress most bacterium.

Botulism bacteria do create a toxin when they grow (the dangerous part) that is not denatured by boiling but if you initially boil the stock for at least ten minutes then all botulin spores are inactivated. (Botulism spores also require an anaerobic environment and a relatively high PH, and a temperature range of 78-118F)

If boiled and stove cooled dishes were that dangerous a *lot* of people would get sick, and that simply doesn't happen. 

And food science text will provide references - I had my copy of "the Art of Making Fermented Sausages" by Stanley Marianski handy and referred to it for some of my comments above. Questions, refutations, and comments welcome.

HTH

PS - I'd not worry for one minute.

[aldensmom09]

perfect!

thanks so much, you all have put my mind at ease and saved some good stock from being wasted!

[prancie]

PPS - before someone calls me to task - botulism spores will grow between 40-140F; I gave the range where they grow optimally and are most dangerous. Just wanting to be accurate.

[artemis33]

I know many would advise against it, but I somewhat regularly let my boiled stock sit *covered* overnight....then strain and reboil it in the morning and put it in jars.

[BirthIsAwesome]

Originally Posted by artemis33 

I know many would advise against it, but I somewhat regularly let my boiled stock sit *covered* overnight....then strain and reboil it in the morning and put it in jars.

I do the same thing :) Definitely not worried about it!