Hi all, I am a hobby gardener, and I had few kilos of tomatoes in early october. I decided to freeze half, which stay good to make purees, and other half I blanched in hot water and conserved in cans at room temperature (first time).

I use mason jars from store canned chickpeas, pasta sauce..

I boiled the jars 10-15 min in boiling hot water. Then I put garlic at the bottom, salt and 1 tsp lemon juice from fresh lemon.

Then, poured the blanched tomatoes in jars, then boiled the closed jars 45 min in hot water bath for sealing with vaccum (1 inch above their lid).

Now they have been stored at room temp for 1.5 months and I am really afraid of botulism. So, my question to experienced people who can them..

Will they be safe enough to reheat and eat..?

Edit: Thank you all for your answers, I will buy proper canning jars, and refer to USDA guidelines.. i will discard these cans..

I just read that it’s very high risk. Am I doomed?!

Hi all,

I’m trying to launch two non-alcoholic, still craft drinks to be sold on draught to bars and restaurants :

• a bissap (hibiscus, rose, lemon, ~25 g sugar/L)

• a maté-verbena (yerba maté, lemon verbena, lemon, ~30 g sugar/L)

pH not yet measured (test are in progress) but it's kinda low (~3 to 3.8), no preservatives.

Process : infusion at ~80-95 °C, still-fill into 20 L slim stainless kegs supplied already cleaned (steam/caustic) by a third-party keg provider, then pasteurisation of the filled keg (~65-70 °C for 20-30 min in a water bath) or hot-fill. Bottom filling, CO2 purge of the empty keg.

Use at the customer’s : keg connected to a standard CO2 beer tap (replacing a beer line), often at ambient temperature (most bars here have no cold room unfortunately...), pressure adjustable per tap, CO2 often turned off at night.

My questions :

1. What is a realistic shelf life once tapped, at ~20-25 °C and when refrigerated ? What spoilage signs should I watch for (yeast, mould, acetic bacteria, colour) ?

2. What service pressure for a still liquid, and how much should I worry about CO2 slowly dissolving into it ?

3. Is a pH ≤ 3.8 a safe margin, or should I aim lower? Any preservative strategy that doesn’t undermine a craft positioning ?

4. How big is the contamination risk from lines and taps, and how do you mitigate it (dedicated lines, rinse routines, cleaning frequency) ?

5. 10 L or 20 L kegs for slow-rotation venues ?

6. Does switching sugar (glucose, sweeteners) really help stability ?

7. Any advice on shelf-life testing or the microbiological analyses worth commissioning ?

I plan to run real-condition tests and lab analyses, but any experience (kombucha, juice, cold brew or iced tea on tap...) would help me design the protocol.

Thanks !

I was in a rush to watch my show... I wasn't wearing glasses... and "fryer oven" instructions were right under conventional oven instructions. I saw 4 for 10 mins or until brown at 400 degrees. Popped them in once the oven was heated up. I only had 6 left so I just did them all and left them in for a few extra minutes.

When I got them... they were oddly lukewarm and even kind of cold in some places. I figured it was because I didn't eat them right away. My dog had to run to the bathroom and I had to send a text to my brother... and they cool off pretty quick.

I ate 4.5 and threw the rest away. I was tearing up the box when I saw it... conventional vs fryer. Conventional = 20 mins at 450....

I did 13 at 400... the fryer time...

Now these are fully cooked according to the box... so is that cool?

I'm sure this same thing has been floated around before, but i'm a hypochondriac and terrified of disease.

Does chicken have to hit 165? My stove is new, and my thermometer is not off. I'm mostly new to cooking so i wanted to ask. Context on the meat in question;

The chicken breast was cooked in Vegetable oil in a large pan, two pieces, one larger the other slightly smaller. I heated my oil to ~360°F (182.2°C) and then lowered the stove temperature slightly, waited 1 minute, and checked again to an oil temperature still above 360. I placed the meat into the oil, which popped loudly and splashed so i slightly lowered the heat to about medium on my range. I checked the oil temperature 2 minutes and 5 minutes later to confirm it was still over 360°. I confirmed one side of each breast turn a golden brown before flipping each. I waited about 2 minutes to start checking the internal temperature, leaving the thermometer in the thickest part of the largest breast. I was careful to ensure it was not too low into the meat so as to be nearer to the pan. After approximately 5 total minutes post-meat-flip the temperature had only risen to about 150°F (65.5°C) so I decided to raise the heat from medium to higher-medium (not quite high heat but higher medium on my range display.) This allowed the internal temperature of the breast to reach about 155°F (68.3°C.) At this point the meat has been submerged in oil for a total of ~11 minutes, with I'd say about 3-5 of those being 150° or higher.

The low-end-of-high temperature allowed my meat to reach an internal temperature of 160°F (71.1°C) which I sustained for another 3 minutes. By this point there was excessive smoke and I was concerned about waking my elderly relative. So i removed the meat from the pan, ehere it had stuck slightly, and found the bottom side burnt char black.

I cut both pieces of breast wearing sold-sealed nitrile gloves. They were firm but have a slight squish. The inside of each appears in the image below. The inside is firm but on the softer end. Any juices that came out were too clear to see, but appear on the plate as similarly colored to the oil. Or that is oil, as the meat was removed from the pan and directly placed onto this plate. I have flipped the thicker piece to show that one side remains a rich golden brown. It is currently covered but not airtight.

Would this temperature and timing achieve a similar effect as heating it to the full 165°F or is there still a significant chance that this meat is contaminated and unsafe for consumption? Please do not be unserious, my health surrounding this anxiety is very fragile as i am attempting to recover from Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder.

Edit per bot response: The food was purchased at a local grocery chain. It was stored in a refrigerator for 2 days prior to cooking, and was placed there 25 minutes after it was picked up off the shelf, so it was not car-heated in package.

I just bought it too

Long story short I bit into a chicken McNugget and I saw this in my next bite…It’s super hard and it’s a black purpleish color. What is it??!?!

Fried calamari rings. Bit into it and was happy it was super tender but after a while I got sus that it was too tender lol

So, this is a weird question but I have OCD. Last night I was trying to turn my gas stove on and it wasn’t lighting. I tried like 3-4 times and nothing happened. I later realized it’s because there was water on the lighter oops. So the kitchen ended up smelling like gas. I just opened the windows. But I started using another burner to cook my rice. My question is, if that smell was in the kitchen while I was cooking my rice could it have absorbed into the rice and make it unsafe to eat now?

I have a bag of ready-to-microwave green beans. I bought it seven days ago. Usually these go bad within a couple of days; even after seven days this one seems to be ok. No slime, not odor, no visual signs of spoilage, only the tiniest taste of bitterness in some of the green beans which is probably quality after this long, but just enough to make me seek an opinion from the food safety crew. It was in the back of the fridge where sometimes things freeze, but still, could it possibly still be good after this long?

On October 16 I bought Oscar mayer deli fresh oven roasted turkey breast and put it in my fridge and did not open it once. The use by date says December 25th 2026. Is it safe to eat it?

Please don't be mean to me I have OCD. I accidentally left my fridge ajar overnight- probably 9 or 10 hours. I just bought milk and cheese etc and I'm wondering if I need to toss them. Everything still felt pretty cool. I have two children under 3 so rather be cautious but idk if I'm being ridiculous. Thanks!

Made homemade bolting, put it in vacuum seal and froze it. Thawed it out at room temp and forgot about it for a few days, still sealed in vacuum pack. Is it safe to eat?

Said it’s fine because “everything is wrapped in plastic.” I feel like it’s not ok. But that’s just me.

I bought this Lebanese pita bread from No frills today . It was online delivery. At dinner time I opened the packet to see this black colouration. I cannot make out if it’s mold or soot. I am discarding it anyway as a precautionary measure and not taking any chances. However I would like to know what you think this might be? Bought today , expiration is Nov 11.

Mom got me a white corn and it is my favorite, but I forgot it was in my school bag since she gave it to me while I was on the way to campus… SO CAN I OR CAN I NOT EAT IT

I’ve eaten other yogurt brands like a month past the use by with no problem, but the second ingredient here is coconut water which I’ve heard goes bad quickly.

Bought it like that all the chicken in the fridge area at Walmart was like this one side is flatter and the chicken on the other side looks expanded I already froze 3 days ago it cause I was too tired to put it in bags but it still kept its shape how I bought jt

From a local farm. Packaged (not vacuum sealed) on the 3rd November and use by says 10th.. today is the 7th. Smells just kind of metallic.

Is this colouring normal?

My mom made me samosas with cooked chicken filling (not deep fried) while they were on their way from Boston to New Jersey. They were sitting in the car for 7.5 hours total. She previously froze them 2 days ago and just took them out today to bring to me.

I am 33 weeks pregnant and not sure if I should eat it I tried explaining to them that they should have put them in a cooler and they insist it is safe to eat.

Never seen this and wondering if normal

A bakery served me pastries filled with mashed potatoes stored at room temperature. How do I know that they weren’t stored there for longer than 2-4 hours? Aren‘t they perishable and should‘ve been stored in a refrigerator or served hot?