Why can’t you put hot chicken in the fridge?

We discuss whether we should put cold or hot food in the refrigerator, the risks of letting food cool inside or outside the refrigerator, and the answer to the question: Can I put warm chicken in the fridge?

What Happens If You Put It In The Fridge?

A week in the refrigerator could cause chicken or other foods to spoil. Cooked chicken may undergo some changes if you forget to remove it from the refrigerator. It may alter the texture, taste, and quality.

It has likely gone bad if it has a slimy texture or changes in color. Also, a spoiled chicken has a strong foul odor. Once you become aware of these changes, you can discard the food item.

Storing Hot Food In The Fridge

A remarkable invention, refrigeration has extended the shelf life of food and protected us from dangerous bacterial growth.

Every health organization advises the public to store food at the right time and temperature to prevent bacterial growth because bacteria love food just as much as humans do (if not more).

However, aren’t we told not to do something like this? Is there any science behind storing hot food in the refrigerator?

Apparently, the myth that claims you can’t keep hot food in the refrigerator is just that: a myth. People don’t give their refrigerator the credit it deserves, which is why.

You’d be surprised at how many people fail to remember that the purpose of a refrigerator is to continuously produce cold air to keep food cold.

Therefore, despite what many people might think, the fridge won’t be “overloaded” or stop functioning when you add any hot food to it. Instead, it will continue to function.

The quality of the other foods in the refrigerator won’t be significantly impacted even if the ambient temperature in the refrigerator rises a few degrees.

Remember that most contemporary refrigerators have an inboard system that continuously tracks the interior cabin temperature, i e. , where you keep all the food.

For instance, in refrigerators using inverter technology, the inboard system will increase the compressor’s output to match the change in ambient temperature. While your refrigerator may “work” a little bit more than usual, it will return to its normal setting in a few minutes.

If you have a standard refrigerator at home, you can rely on it to keep food cold despite the “tough odds.” ”.

Yes, a typical refrigerator may require a little bit more energy to reduce the ambient temperature to normal, but neither the hot chicken nor any stored food will suffer as a result!

The Right Method For Storing Hot Chicken

Here are a few thorough instructions for keeping hot chicken in the refrigerator:

After cooking the chicken, remove the foil and let the chicken cool down at room temperature. Make sure that you check the internal temperature of the chicken, which should read about 160°F.

• Keep the chicken under the fan for roughly 10 minutes if you’re in a rush. Chicken should not be left outside for more than two hours.

Once adequately cool, but still warm to the touch, rewrap the chicken (if necessary) and put it in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.

Freezing hot chicken is another topic that can be confusing. Can chicken that has just come out of the oven be frozen?

There are many factors to take into account, so the answer is not that straightforward. But we’ll try to highlight a few important guidelines.

Keeping hot food in the freezer is only possible when your refrigeration system is operating at peak efficiency and there isn’t a lot of other food that could be impacted by the ambient heat from the chicken, which is the first thing to keep in mind.

This technique is feasible because the freezer compartment can circulate very cold air, which can transfer heat out of the chicken and lower the food’s temperature in a matter of minutes!

Consider how quickly hot food cools off when you blow on it. Similar to the previous example, there is very little chance for the escaping heat to raise the ambient temperature inside the freezer compartment when there is a constant flow of very cold air.

But even then, you should exercise extreme caution when freezing hot chicken.

Of course, we wouldn’t advise storing piping hot chicken straight out of the oven on the same baking sheet because that would harm the interior of your freezer.

The best way to accomplish this is to transfer the chicken into a sizable container and then freeze it; however, you must first ensure that the storage container is freezer-safe and high-heat rated.

It’s not a good idea to combine hot food and plastic containers because the latter could leak chemicals into the food, making it unhealthy and possibly dangerous.

Therefore, if you do intend to store hot food, we advise moving the chicken carefully and placing it in a high-quality storage container.

The alternative is to delay freezing the chicken for a few minutes. Those who don’t want to serve the chicken that same day typically use this technique.

The meat can be preserved and prevented from spoiling by freezing. For instance, you can easily get 2 to 6 months of storage time in the freezer if chicken only lasts a couple of days in the refrigerator.

However, there are a few considerations to bear in mind, just like with the fridge method. Here are a few thorough procedures for correctly freezing hot chicken:

Once the chicken is ready, remove any foil and allow it to air out.

• This procedure is even more crucial when the chicken is frozen because doing so will enable the chicken to absorb all the juices more effectively, evaporating any excess liquid on the surface.
• Remember, freezer burn is caused by too much moisture and big temperature differences, so the drier the surface, the less likely you are to get it. It can result in white icy patches on food’s surface that can severely dry out food and cause flavor and texture loss as well.

Once the chicken is warm (but not steaming), move it into a separate freezer-safe container.

Store the chicken in the coldest part of the freezer – which is usually at the back and away from the door.

Once the chicken is cooked, remove the foil and carefully move the chicken into a heat and freezer-safe container with a steam lid. Store the container at the back of the freezer.

• The steam lid will prevent pressure from building up inside the container and give the chicken enough moisture to reabsorb extra liquids.

After 45 minutes in the freezer, seal the steam lid by pressing down on it.

• This will seal the container airtight and aid in keeping the chicken fresh for a long time. For more details on steam lids and how to seal them, please consult the instruction manual that came with your airtight container.

Check out this tutorial from Jamie Oliver on YouTube.

Here are some crucial advice and pointers to bear in mind:

When storing hot or warm chicken in the fridge, always empty and reserve a full compartment so that the chicken can cool down without affecting other food around it.

For maximum coverage, always keep the chicken at the top most compartment so that it gets a direct flow of cool air. Most fridges have a fan at the top which blows air in and around the inner chamber.

Try different cooling settings to offset the temperature difference caused by storing the hot chicken in the fridge. Some refrigerator models have a “turbo” or “quick cool” option that will increase the output of the fridge, thereby cooling down the chicken much quicker than usual.

No-frost fridges are excellent for cooling down hot food. They work by extracting air and humidity from the freezer compartment and are much more efficient at maintaining a consistent temperature.

Regularly service your fridge for the best results. You would not want to store hot chicken in the fridge only to have it cool down after 3-4 hours! Remember, 40-140°F is the danger zone! The less time the chicken spends between these two temperature ranges the better!

Do not repeatedly check on the food once in the fridge and freezer. Repeatedly opening and closing the door will cause the internal temperature of either compartment to rise!

Please keep in mind that storing hot food directly in the fridge/freezer will NOT increase its overall storage life but may only positively impact its flavor and texture over the long term.

In addition to being safe, keeping hot or warm food in the fridge can also be a great way to stop bacteria from growing, especially if you won’t be eating it right away.

Now that you are knowledgeable about how to properly store hot food in the refrigerator, consider the following queries:

Can You Refrigerate Cooked Food? | Hot Food In The Fridge?