Food poisoning worries

[lorenza]

I'm trying to be a bit more savvy with my budget and get into the habit of storing leftovers and reheating, but I'm having issues with my fear of food poisoning.

On Monday night I cooked a beef mince and immediately decanted half into a tupperware pot, left to cool down slightly on the side (with lid on) and put in the fridge on its own shelf within 1 hour.

It is now Wednesday (48 hours) and I just reheated the mince but now I can't stop myself googling food poisoning - I've had it before and it was awful but there was also a big story in the UK a while back of someone who died of food poisoning from reheated turkey and I'm a bit more paranoid now. (My health anxiety only ever revolves around illnesses I could die from)

I heated the mince in a small pan with some oil and water to loosen up the sauce. I reckon it was probably heating for around 15 minutes as it was on for a little while before I even started cooking my pasta and then both were served at the same time. The mince was bubbling and steaming and when I put a fork in the middle it was hot to touch, but now my stomach is gurgling and I'm convinced i did it wrong!

My ocd is quite bad at the moment (Im finding it difficult to leave my house in the morning and have to check at least five times that my front door is locked) so I'm trying to be logical about this, but since I HAVE given myself food poisoning before I can't help but think I have again....

[Autumn4]

Hi I have the same issue about food poisoning. I am really careful with prep etc. I won't handle chicken - I have a tap running & a dish ready. I unwrap chicken & put wrapping in bin which I have open already. Chicken put straight in dish & I then wash my hands with pump action soap under the already running tap. When I watch cookery programmes where chefs are manhandling the chicken & reaching for salt etc I want to ring them up ! Regarding your mince even I would reheat it & eat it without worrying. It had been cooked & cooled within an hour & kept in fridge so will be fine. You mentioned the turkey incident & it probably hadn't been cooked properly the first time then not reheated properly. It would also be are to die from food poisoning unless the person had some health issues anyway. I have a cooking thermometer that I use for poultry. Not expensive & you know the correct temp has been reached for killing any bacteria. Your stomach is gurgling because you have eaten & also due to anxiety. Put your feet up & watch something you enjoy on the telly.

[tmckenzie-orr]

Just as autumn said it's basically impossible to die from food poisoning unless u have a underline health condition , the worse a healthy person will have is diahorea and sickness so don't worry ur be fin

[Fishmanpa]

Just as autumn said it's basically impossible to die from food poisoning unless u have a underline health condition , the worse a healthy person will have is diahorea and sickness so don't worry ur be fin

Not just that but only two days? Pffft... I've scraped mold off of a block of Parmesan cheese, used the remainder and it's been fine.

Positive thoughts

[Frenchy]

I'm trying to be a bit more savvy with my budget and get into the habit of storing leftovers and reheating, but I'm having issues with my fear of food poisoning.

On Monday night I cooked a beef mince and immediately decanted half into a tupperware pot, left to cool down slightly on the side (with lid on) and put in the fridge on its own shelf within 1 hour.

It is now Wednesday (48 hours) and I just reheated the mince but now I can't stop myself googling food poisoning - I've had it before and it was awful but there was also a big story in the UK a while back of someone who died of food poisoning from reheated turkey and I'm a bit more paranoid now. (My health anxiety only ever revolves around illnesses I could die from)

I heated the mince in a small pan with some oil and water to loosen up the sauce. I reckon it was probably heating for around 15 minutes as it was on for a little while before I even started cooking my pasta and then both were served at the same time. The mince was bubbling and steaming and when I put a fork in the middle it was hot to touch, but now my stomach is gurgling and I'm convinced i did it wrong!

My ocd is quite bad at the moment (Im finding it difficult to leave my house in the morning and have to check at least five times that my front door is locked) so I'm trying to be logical about this, but since I HAVE given myself food poisoning before I can't help but think I have again....

For what it's worth, your food preparation sounds perfectly sensible to me. Cooked fully and in the fridge within an hour - and re-heated (within 48 hours) until piping hot throughout. To me, this sounds absolutely, positively, 100% fine - and in my humble opinion unlikely to result in food poisoning.

And I haven't had food poisoning before [touch wood :winks:]