Rice left out overnight...eat or toss?

[Excelsior! Academy]

Rice in rice cooker, unplugged around 6 or 7 pm.

[Cindy in FL.]

I would toss it, but only because I read something recently about a bacteria that grows in cooked rice. Bacillus cereus.

[Cinder]

Toss! Rice seems to grow bacteria really fast. I can remember leaving rice out for just a few hours and having it already smelling sour by the time I remembered it.

[allyphoe]

Toss! We eat a lot of rice cooker rice at our house, and rice goes bad really fast. My Taiwanese MIL has the most lax food safety standards I've ever seen (meat thawing in warm water on the kitchen counter for 8+ hours, for instance) and she never leaves rice in the rice cooker for more than an hour after it's done.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Definitely toss.  Rice is one of those things that doesn't do well being left out.  And I'm by no means all that careful about stuff like that in general.  I do recall in the Serve Safe class that that was a big one for bacterial growth.

 

 

 

 

[lllll]

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[Excelsior! Academy]

Okay, tossing. At least rice is cheap.

[Guest submarines]

Wow, I'm surprised to hear that rice goes bad quickly. I usually make a largish pot, leave it on the stove top up to several days, and taking small portions from it to different meals. My younger two like rice with milk and honey, DH likes rice with soya souse, my oldest likes it plain with butter.

 

I think it goes bad on day 3 or 4. It's never gone bad overnight.

 

When it does go bad it really stinks.

[skimomma]

Wow, I'm surprised to hear that rice goes bad quickly. I usually make a largish pot, leave it on the stove top up to several days, and taking small portions from it to different meals. My younger two like rice with milk and honey, DH likes rice with soya souse, my oldest likes it plain with butter.

 

I think it goes bad on day 3 or 4. It's never gone bad overnight.

 

When it does go bad it really stinks.

 

I agree.  I have never had it go bad.  I usually keep a huge pot on my front porch for 3-4 days at a time.  It is cool out there but not always as cold as the fridge.  We eat it nearly every day so I just scoop out what we want for a meal or snack until it is gone or it has been 4 days....then I freeze in single serving portions.  

 

I might have to rethink that.....

[lllll]

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[Tanaqui]

I would sooner eat meat under those circumstances than rice, as rice can go bad super fast.

[JFSinIL]

Toss. I read about how one group of soldiers in WWI got really sick after being fed rice that had been cooked the day before (obviously unrefrigerated).

[happi duck]

Wow, I never had any idea! I so appreciate the countless things I learn here!!!

[Carol in Cal.]

Cold cooked rice is the best starting point for fried rice.  So if you have leftovers, that's a great thing to do with them.  The grains retain their integrity better than hot cook rice does.

[Guest submarines]

I've never had rice go bad either.  And I also leave it in the pot on the stove top.

 

 

:iagree:Refrigerated rice doesn't taste good. I googled and it is suggested to refrigerate rice as soon as it cools and that bacteria grows within 2 hours. That's crazy! :coolgleamA: 

[chocolatechip]

I wouldn't keep it. I hear that rice is notorious for culturing bad bacteria. 

 

And I would usually eat most of the things people ask about.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Well, if you can't eat rice left in a rice cooker overnight then every single Japanese person must get food poisoning every single day.  I often keep my rice in the rice cooker.   Putting it in the fridge even with a lid makes it taste not so good.  We eat it so quickly though that it is never left for more than one day.  

[solascriptura]

Well, if you can't eat rice left in a rice cooker overnight then every single Japanese person must get food poisoning every single day. I often keep my rice in the rice cooker. Putting it in the fridge even with a lid makes it taste not so good. We eat it so quickly though that it is never left for more than one day.

Most Asians would have no problem with rice left out overnight. Now, if it is very warm in your house, it probably would spoil, but you will know right away by the smell. I eat rice daily and have never ever poisoned myself or my loved ones.

[Guest]

I didn't know that either. I was going to suggest rice pudding if the texture was off.

 

I guess playing on the chat board isn't such an irresponsible thing to do while my kid is temporarily refraining from going, "Moooooooooooooooom!!!!!!" after all.

 

TFS

[Katy]

I toss anything that's moist.  But then I'm ridiculously allergic to mold.  I don't even keep plants in the house anymore after a particularly humid summer.