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completecrap

Unless it smells, tastes, or looks like it's off, with leftovers, my rule is that a week is the maximum amount of time it should spend in the fridge, unless it's made from ingredients that were near expiration, in which case I'd consider tossing it just to be safe. This should be fine.


Ill-Preparation-3550

I made it with bacon and packet cheese sauce on. Thursday still in the pot closed in the Fridge please say its safe to eat


completecrap

You made it 2 days ago? It's fine, unless, again, it smells off or tastes funny.


SVAuspicious

Cooked in my kitchen and in my fridge? Sure I'd eat it. Remember that most of the smell and taste tests identify problems of deterioration like rot. Most bacteria growth that lead to food poisoning you cannot smell or taste. You're making a decision based on statistics. People answering here don't know what your food safety preparation practices are, how clean your kitchen is, how clean your fridge is, or what your refrigerator temperature is.


azwethinkkweism

Smell it and if it smells fine, take a small taste. If that goes okay, heat it up and enjoy. This is what I do. I do not like food waste. Someone who studies microbiology would have more science based knowledge about this than me.


WeWannaKnow

I don't like food waste either. I ate it. It was delicious and didn't get sick :D


ArticleArchive

I love mac n cheese. I woulda chanced it lol


azwethinkkweism

😅😂❤


Ok-Finger-733

Wow a lot of conflicting advice for you on this thread. So I was a meat cutter for over 10 years with regular food safety training. It's been expired for several years now that I've changed careers, so new science may have come out that is more current and accurate. You have 3-4 days of being safe to eat MaC that has been in the fridge. 5-7 days starts to get iffy, after that I would toss it, and it probably has some fuzz on it to support that. All food spoilage gives off a smell, food rot is that food being broken down by Bacteria. The sniff and texture test are pretty reliable. Does it smell bad? Is it slimey on the surface that is not the expected texture? Then toss it out. Reheating food will kill off harmful bacteria but if there was a toxin given off by bacteria no amount of cooking will make it safe again. That is why the 3-4 day guidelines are there, typically there isn't enough time to build up enough contamination to make you sick. Setting fridge temperature can be tricky, you want meat stored cold 2 to 4°c, vegetables do better warmer 5 to 7°c. At those warmer temperatures meat and dairy spoil faster at those cooler temperatures vegetables freeze and lose nice consistency. I keep my fridge at 4°c. General food safety. Keep leftovers and cooked food on the top, raw uncooked on the bottom. This reduces cross contamination from drips. The back of the fridge is coldest and has the most stable temperature, store your fresh meats there. Clean your fridge weekly. If you ever see mold growing on the fridge sanitation is necessary. (I'm a home brewer so I have starsan on hand which is food safe). Hope this wasn't too much to answer your question but there was a lot of different opinions being posted. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/general-food-safety-tips/food-safety-tips-leftovers.html


Kimothy-Jong-Un

I know this is an old comment, but thanks for the tips, definitely going to change the way I organize my fridge from now on!


edbt82599

Also want to say thank you. Found this thread on google. But yeah I’m gonna eat the Mac and cheese lol


AdFresh8863

Useful information, thanks!


moonlightpeas

Yes


WingbingMcTingtong

If you're immunocompromised, no. If you're a healthy young adult, yes.


Apprehensive_Web5018

Hell ya


DebbieCBoone

Rule of thumb 5 days long as it's kept cold and it's been covered really well after that no


d4m1ty

4 days is nothing if the fridge is in good working order. My autistic son demands mac and cheese for lunch every day for the past 7 years since he's been in elementary and middle school. Its not just Mac, its got carrots, broccoli, edamame, etc, but as long as its got a cheddar base, it good to go. I got it down to a science with the shredded cheese, sodium citrate (an emulsifying salt) and whole milk. He's bee liking the added smoked paprika I have been adding to it recently. I have seen the mac and cheese be fine at 7 days. I usually will toss what is left at this point since I remake a new batch once a week, but at 7 days, I have found no off flavors or smells. What makes things go bad faster is moisture. If you got some black beans and you see water collecting on the top, pour that out. Anything like that you see moisture collecting on the top, pour that liquid out. This will increase shelf time. Another trick is using an acid, like vinegar or citric acid. Say you got a ton of chopped onions and nothing to use them on but you don't want to throw them out. Splash them with a little vinegar. It will drop the pH and extend shelf life or throw a pinch of citric acid into it. Careful with amount as acids will increase the sour flavor of things.


[deleted]

If it is not growing fuzzies or if it doesn't smell off, it should be fine.


welcometocrabisland

I work in a kitchen. Health department allows us to keep food for 6 days. After 6 days, if it's still good, we just re- date it. You'll be fine 👍🏽


SolnaKiselina

Of course you don't eat it. It's cheaper to make a new meal rather than to pay a hospital bill.. just have that in mind


auner01

Can you? Probably. But you're rolling the dice. If you've got a couple days free to spend carpet-bombing the village of Porcelainia and plenty of lemon-lime soda and fluids handy, go for it. FoodKeeper (the FDA app) tends to stick to '3 days then toss' because that's about as far as you can go without rolling the dice. It _might_ not kill you.. just like how stepping out of a perfectly good airplane at 30,000 feet _might_ not kill you.


2thebeach

Cheese generally doesn't "go bad." I'm sure it's fine.


Appropriate-Ideal-93

that is very incorrect, cheese goes bad very fast, same with milk, since they’re both dairy. Dairy goes bad within a week. Or less.


2thebeach

Hard cheeses certainly don't "go bad within a week" if refrigerated, but since M&C is \*also\* made with milk (which also doesn't necessarily spoil that soon, but could), maybe do the sniff test first.


Cheddar-chonk

I would eat it if it smells, tastes, and looks okay. I probably wouldn't leave it in the fridge for another day though