Sand in the Coffee, Vol. 128: the warm fridge, and what to throw out before you unpack
Four hours. That is the number to remember. According to federal food safety guidance, a closed refrigerator keeps food cold enough to be safe for about four hours after the power goes out. A full freezer holds for about 48 hours if you keep the door shut, and a half-full one for about 24.
If your condo or house on the Key or in Orange Beach lost power and you are only now getting back to it, you are likely past all of those clocks. The fridge is a science project, and hope is not a refrigerant.
the rule that makes it easy
When in doubt, throw it out. It is a boring rule, and it is a good one, because you cannot see, smell or taste the bacteria that matter. Food that smells fine can still make you sick, and a rental kitchen is a bad place to find out.
what goes first
- Meat, poultry, fish and shellfish that sat in a warm fridge. That includes the shrimp you were saving.
- Milk, soft cheese, yogurt, eggs and anything made with them, including that half-finished egg salad.
- Leftovers, cooked pasta, cut melon and deli salads.
- Anything in the freezer that has thawed all the way and sat at room temperature.
what can stay
- Hard cheeses, butter and margarine.
- Mustard, ketchup, soy sauce, jelly and most unopened condiments.
- Whole fruits and vegetables.
- Frozen food that still has ice crystals or feels as cold as if it were in a refrigerator. Check each item, not the whole freezer. If it is still solid with ice crystals, it can be refrozen, though the quality may suffer.
the appliance thermometer trick
If you own a rental or a second home on the Key, buy a cheap appliance thermometer and leave it in the fridge. When you come back after an outage, a reading of 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below means the food was likely fine. Above that and it is time to bag it up. It costs a few dollars and it settles the argument before the argument starts.
the cleanup, and the bag
Double-bag the spoiled food and, if the trash pickup is disrupted, check the county’s current guidance before you drag it to the curb. Debris and trash collection is on its own schedule right now, and a bag of shrimp in a closed Gulf Coast garage will announce itself to the neighborhood. Wipe down the fridge with a baking soda and water solution, and leave the doors open to air out if the power is back and you are not yet ready to restock.
water, too
If your area is under a boil water notice, treat the ice maker and the dispenser as suspect and toss any ice made during the outage. Check with your utility or the county for the current notice for your address, since they differ by neighborhood and change quickly.
and then, go eat somewhere
The good news is that the best thing you can do for the coast this week is spend a little money at the places that are open. Check /happy-hours/ for who is pouring, and call ahead, because hours may change day to day as power and staff come back. Eat a hot meal, tip like the place has had a long weekend, and restock your own kitchen when the grocery store shelves are full again. For flags and surf before you head out on the sand, /beach-today/ has the current read.
The fridge is the last thing anyone thinks about after a storm, and the first thing you will smell if you forget it. Open it once, hold your breath, and be done.
— Chris
P.S. If you run a place on the Key or in Orange Beach and it’s on this site, it’s yours to claim — free, always: /submit/claim/
