For many of us, leftover Chinese food has pretty much reached the point of becoming a household staple
in our refrigerators. That once-a-week order supplies two days worth of
dinner, making it one of our favorite (and most cost-effective!) meals ever.
However, you can
get seriously sick from eating those leftovers, but it’s not the meat
or fish that's the culprit. Instead, leftover rice in any
meal—yes, even ones you've cooked yourself—can pose a serious health
risk if not stored properly after being cooked for the first time.
According to the NHS,
it's the way you store rice after cooking it that can get people sick.
Here’s why: Uncooked rice oftentimes contains spores of Bacillus cereus (a
bacteria that can potentially cause food poisoning), which has the
ability to survive even when the rice is cooked. Once cooked, if you
leave the rice standing at room temperature for a long period of time,
those spores can grow into and breed bacteria, which may eventually
produce illness-inducing toxins—hence the food poisoning.
So, if you tend to leave your leftover rice on the
kitchen counter for a while before sticking it in the fridge, you're
increasing your risk of getting sick. The longer cooked rice is left at
room temperature, the higher your chances are that the bacteria will grow and cause food poisoning.
Luckily, it’s relatively easy to avoid food poisoning
from rice if you follow a few basic storage rules. The most important
tip? Serve rice as soon as it’s been cooked and cool it as quickly as
possible afterward (ideally within one hour). Also, be sure to keep rice
in the fridge for no more than one day until reheating and don’t reheat
the rice more than once. Follow these rules, and your leftovers will be
safe to eat!
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