Is It Safe to Eat Cooked Pork, After It's Been Sitting Out On The Counter For 8 Hours At Room Temperature?

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Robin Burden Profile
Robin Burden answered
Nope, I wouldn't recommend tucking into a piece of pork that's been left out on a counter for over 8 hours, no matter how tasty it might look.

Luckily, you should be able to enjoy your piece of meat once you've heated it up, though - as this will eradicate the bacteria that have undoubtedly grown on it.

How long can you leave meat out? Bacteria multiply very rapidly. For this reason, it's not recommended that you leave meat out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.

The reason is that room temperature 20 °C (68 °F) provides the ideal condition for bacteria to grow. In 2 hours, bacteria will have multiplied sufficiently to make you seriously ill.

Bacterial reproduction will only slow down once the temperature drops below 5 °C (41 °F).

To kill bacteria completely, a temperature of 65 °C (149 °F) is advisable. Heating a piece of pork to this temperature will ensure that all the bacteria that had been able to grow and thrive on its surface will destroyed.

You can then enjoy your pork safely.
Jessica Profile
Jessica answered
No, its never safe to eat any meats that have been cooked and left out overnight - bacteria grows rapidly and you could end up with an ulcer.

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