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Rant: A potluck in Seattle changed how I handle food safety forever
I was at a big family reunion potluck in Seattle last year, and about 15 people got sick from a potato salad that sat out for over 6 hours. The person who made it said they 'never got sick from it before' and didn't use a cooler. Now I bring a digital thermometer to every gathering and keep my cold dishes on ice until right before serving. Has anyone else had a close call that made them change their routine?
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drewc6220d agoMost Upvoted
That story is a solid reminder how fast things can go wrong. My own wake-up call was a bad batch of deviled eggs at a church picnic, which is why I'm now weird about mayo-based stuff in the heat. Some people just don't get how quickly bacteria grows on food left out.
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pathenderson20d ago
Honestly, I think people get way too worried about that stuff. I've left potato salad out all day at a barbecue and never had a problem. Drewc62, maybe your church picnic was just a one-off bad egg situation, literally. A little sun isn't going to ruin good food that fast. Most of the time it's fine and worrying about it takes the fun out of a potluck.
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