Is it true that you can’t put the hotter in the refrigerator?

There is an opinion that hot food must be cooled before putting in the refrigerator. We decided to check if there are grounds for such precautions.

Articles The fact that you cannot put in the refrigerator, Meet on sites Many services Repair And sale household appliances. Some texts claim that this harms the device itself, in others-which worsens the taste of the dishes, and also increases the overall temperature in the refrigerator, which is why both the hot product itself and its “neighbors” on the shelves may deteriorate. Write This is also entertaining Portals And resourcesdedicated digital technologies, the subject is trying to figure out users of the Platform Blog "Zen" And "Picabu". Often They ask About this and users of services questions And answers.

A large pot of just boiled soup or a whole -blade of entire turkey, indeed, can To increase the overall temperature in the refrigerator, and because of this, the products that are stored there may deteriorate. Norwegian food safety department is unambiguous expressed Against the refrigerator in the refrigerator, and due to a possible increase in temperature, and due to condensation, which is formed due to the temperature difference and also contributes to the reproduction of bacteria, Do not advise Put hot food in the refrigerator and Manufacturers Kitchen household appliances-for the same reasons, as well as because in this case the device has to work with increased load, which means to consume more electricity. 

At the same time, authoritative medical organizations do not recommend cooling hot food at room temperature for too long - for example, leave overnight. So, specialists of the Ministry of Health and Social Services of the United States They saythat perishable food must be put in the refrigerator for two hours, and if the temperature in the room exceeds 32 ° C, then within an hour. Otherwise, it is better to throw the dish, since at a temperature above 4 ° C, bacteria may begin to multiply in it. The opinion of their colleagues Separate and experts of centers for the control and prevention of US diseases (CDC).

This recommendation is related to the so -called dangerous zone - temperatures from 4 ° C to 60 ° C, when bacteria feel most comfortable and can make food unusable for consumption relatively quickly. Specialists They saythat freshly prepared food should cool up to 21 ° C over the refrigerator in two hours (if the ambient temperature is not higher than 32 ° C, as mentioned above), and then in the next four hours - up to 4 ° C already in it. If the first stage is not enough to cool the dish, it must again be heated to 74 ° C for at least 15 seconds. And then start cool again. To speed up the cooling process, you can place a container with food in cold water or divide a large dish into several small containers that cool faster.

However, some experts - for example, from the US Department of Agriculture - They thinkthat small portions of hot food are still safe enough to put in the refrigerator, since they will quickly cool and do not have time to create dangerous conditions for other products. The same opinion adhere to and experts of the Office for Sanitary Supervision of the quality of food and US medicines (FDA). 

As you can see, even among scientists there is no consensus about whether it is possible to put hot dishes in the refrigerator. In November 2021, the University of North Carolina (USA) released PodcastIn which two university experts discussed this issue and also did not come to a consensus. However, they both agreed that a large number of hot products in the refrigerator at the same time, and even covered with lids, slowing down the cooling process, could really create problems. 

Thus, experts have not yet come to a common denominator on the question of whether it is possible to clean the hot food in the refrigerator. So far, some say that it is completely safe, you just have to pack a large portion on several small containers for faster cooling, others say that this can lead to damage to all food on neighboring shelves. At the same time, experts agree that if you cool the food before putting it in the refrigerator, then no more than two hours (or an hour, if it is very hot in the room), otherwise it will need to be heated again - or completely throw it away.

Photo on the cover: pexels.com

This is not for sure

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