Everyone has long been accustomed to the fact that the products sold in our stores are stored for a long time thanks to the preservatives added to their composition. It’s convenient: put it in the refrigerator/freezer, when needed, warm it up and eat it. However, if stored improperly, some products contain harmful substances that cause poisoning. One of them is fried chicken. We will tell you further how long you can store it in the refrigerator and freezer.
In a refrigerator
Ready (boiled, fried, baked)
Regardless of the method of heat treatment (frying, stewing, baking in the oven, boiling), it should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than 24 hours. To do this, you first need to cool the container with food and only then put it on the shelf of the refrigerator. You can also use airtight storage containers to prevent the penetration of foreign odors.
Thawed
A thawed carcass should be used in cooking within 12 hours after complete thawing. Repeated freezing is strictly prohibited, since under the influence of low temperature fluctuations, muscle fibers are destroyed and chicken loses its nutritional properties.
Raw
The following types of containers are usually used to place raw chilled chicken in a refrigerator:
- Airtight container or vacuum bag.
- Glassware.
- Store tray with cling film.
The whole carcass is stored for no more than 5 days at a temperature of -2 to +2 °C. The freshness area of the refrigerator is perfect. Parts of the carcasses must be consumed within 2 days. After the specified time, it is better not to freeze the product.
Smoked
Very often, raw materials are used to prepare smoked chicken, the shelf life of which is coming to an end. This is how manufacturers try to reduce their financial losses. Therefore, it is recommended to carefully choose a hot-smoked product or smoke the bird yourself at home.
Factory products in sealed vacuum packaging are stored until the date indicated on the label. If the seal has been broken, the dish should be consumed the next day. Initially, try not to purchase goods in places with possible violations of storage organization (markets in the summer, small retail outlets where the goods could be stored).
If you smoked the product yourself, the carcass was well warmed up inside, and the raw materials were fresh enough, you can safely place the food in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
In broth or soup
Broth or soup made from chicken meat can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, just like boiled chicken. It is important to remember that during cooking, harmful substances are released into the water, so after boiling it is better to drain the water. The “second” broth is considered safer and healthier, especially for people with gastrointestinal problems.
Soup made from a farm product, the origin of which you are sure of, will be aromatic, mild in taste and will retain its nutritional properties for up to 36 hours at a temperature of +2+4 degrees.
Grill
The shelf life of grilled chicken in the refrigerator is no more than 2 days. In this case, you need to pay attention to the date and time of preparation of the dish. The sooner it was prepared, the sooner the food should be consumed. After just a few hours, the poultry meat becomes tough and loses its original taste. It is optimal to place the product in an airtight container with a lid, since the specific smell can be absorbed by other products located in the refrigerator. Before serving, make sure that the dish has not spoiled.
Pickled
The shelf life of marinated chicken directly depends on the ingredients included in the marinade. If it is based on natural preservatives (vinegar, herbs and spices, salt, lemon juice, soy sauce, brine, vegetable oils, onions), then poultry meat will retain its nutritional value at a temperature of +2+4°C for 72 hours. Fermented milk products, beer, and mineral water added to the marinade reduce the duration of placing raw materials in the refrigerator to a day. It is not recommended to use utensils made of wood and aluminum to store such semi-finished products.
By-products
Fresh chicken by-products are often used in cooking: stomachs, liver, hearts. As a rule, they are not subjected to long-term storage, since such raw materials are a breeding ground for the proliferation of pathogenic organisms and bacteria. The shelf life in the refrigerator should not exceed 18 hours. It is better to either immediately prepare food from offal, or freeze it if heat treatment is not possible in the near future.
Storage Features
Regardless of the selected temperature, chicken that is not going to be cooked immediately is placed in the freezer. In this case, you need to use durable packaging for storage with sufficient tightness and moisture resistance. Packaging must be selected that is resistant to sub-zero temperatures. You should not put the whole bird in the freezer: it needs to be divided into parts, frozen in portions. It is better to use containers with a minimum of air for this.
Speaking about the nuances of freezing and storage, one cannot fail to note the size of the frozen product. Not only is it easier and more correct to freeze chicken in pieces, you also need to take into account the size of these pieces. In order for the product to freeze faster, and the meat not to suffer from bacterial growth, you need to take into account the volume. The thinner and smaller the pieces of poultry are, the faster the frozen portions can freeze inside to the required -18 degrees.
For example, a briquette of fillet cut into small pieces with a layer of 2 cm will freeze faster than a similar briquette 4 cm thick. However, when freezing, you cannot put one briquette on top of another - the freezing time will double. As for the time period, such a fillet briquette is frozen inside the freezer in about 2-3 hours. If it is thicker, it may take 6 hours to freeze.
Few people have thought about how to properly store chicken in the freezer. It is preferable to form it in the form of a rectangle. And the point here is not so much about saving space. It is this molding that helps the chicken meat freeze faster inside the freezer. In addition, the correct form is more convenient.
The conditions inside the freezer are also important. Its space must be organized in such a way that during the freezing process bacteria cannot move from workpiece to workpiece. Particular attention should be paid to the proximity of meat to berries, which are not subsequently subjected to heat treatment.
It is important to note that washing meat before freezing shortens the shelf life of the semi-finished product or offal.
Having prepared the meat and the packaging necessary for it, we must not forget about the markings, thanks to which the housewife will know exactly how long the chicken meat has been in the freezer. It is worth remembering that after freezing, you cannot defrost and re-freeze the chicken. This will shorten its shelf life and deteriorate its taste.
In a plastic bag
Following all the rules for storing poultry meat in a plastic bag, you can do this in different ways. For example, one convenient option is portion packaging of meat. A frozen layer of small thickness placed in a bag will defrost faster. There is no need to defrost whole poultry or meat with bones. This storage option is especially successful if the chicken is ground into minced meat.
You can freeze minced meat immediately in a plastic bag. To do this, the amount of minced meat required for one cooking is placed in a bag, given a flat rectangular shape, pressing it on the sides with the flat side of a knife. After this, small indentations are made directly on top of the bag, dividing the meat layer into several squares in this way. Next, the minced meat is frozen. When the time comes to defrost, you can break off the required amount of meat for cooking.
A small thickness of the layer will facilitate optimal defrosting of the chicken. By the way, you can pack finely chopped meat into bags using packaging equipped with a zip lock. Ziploc bags are very convenient. At the same time, depending on their size, you can freeze even small portions; they will defrost very quickly in the future, which will please the housewife who does not have time to wait for defrosting.
You can create the desired briquette using an empty juice box. To do this, the meat, freed from bones, is placed in a bag, and the bag itself is placed in a box. It is frozen, then the briquette in the package is taken out and stored without the box.
In a plastic container
This method is convenient because you can store not only chicken, but also broth in plastic containers. It is poured into prepared containers and frozen, thus preparing the basis for the future soup. By the way, the technique allows you to supplement chicken broth with various herbs, dried vegetables and even pasta. As for bones and meat trimmings, they can also be stored in containers and later used as a base for soup.
In the freezer
If you need to freeze chicken, it is best to portion the product into containers and place it in the freezer, having previously labeled it. Subsequently, it will be convenient to defrost each portion separately as needed. Since frozen meat begins to dehydrate when exposed to low temperatures, it is best to use it by adding it to soups and salads.
The storage period in the freezer depends on the temperature set there: .
- -12 °C - from 2 to 4 months;
- -18 °C – up to 8 months;
- -25 °C - up to 1 year.
General tips for storing chicken
Cooked breast spoils faster than raw meat. Shelf life depends on packaging and temperature. The microclimate of the refrigerator allows you to keep meat for a maximum of 3 days. If you put it in the freezer, you must first cut it into portions.
Tips for storing produce in the refrigerator:
- if you put the breast in a plastic container, it will last for several days longer;
- when putting meat in a bag, it is necessary to thoroughly release all the air, since contact with oxygen accelerates the process of decomposition of the product;
- Do not place the breast next to the fish, otherwise it will absorb the smell;
- It’s better to buy today’s breast in the store; the longer it sits on the store counter, the less it will last at home;
- separate the meat from the bone, so its freshness will last longer;
- Designate a special place in the refrigerator for storing meat.
Fried brisket will last longer than boiled brisket.
At room temperature
A finished chicken dish (boiled breast, baked in cream or foil, pate, galantine, roll, chicken fillet chops, pilaf, shawarma) can be kept at room temperature for only a few hours (no more than 4). This situation is due to the rapid growth of bacteria and the acceleration of decay processes in a warm environment.
A raw carcass will last no more than 120 minutes at +22°C. To extend the time, place it in the coolest and darkest place in the apartment. Storage in vacuum bags placed in ice water is allowed, but care must be taken that the water does not have time to heat up. A balcony (in cooler months) or a basement will also be a great place to store supplies. Adding natural preservatives (salt, lemon, vinegar) will preserve the nutritional value for 12-24 hours.
How many days can you eat fried fish?
Fried fish
, like other cooked animal products, should be placed in the refrigerator immediately after cooling.
be stored
on the refrigerator shelf for 1-2 days.
Interesting materials:
What does the security service check? What does the IQ test test? What does a gastroenterologist check? What do gas workers check? What do they check when registering a car? What do they check when you register a car? What do neurologists test with a hammer? What does a neurologist check? What to check when buying a new iPhone? What is captcha verification?
How to determine delay
In order to understand whether chicken has gone bad , you need to consistently evaluate the main organoleptic properties:
- The color of the muscle fibers should be pink/pale pink for the raw product and white for the finished product. Gray color, the formation of white or green plaque, yellow spots indicate damage.
- A pungent odor mixed with rotten eggs, ammonia, and acid is characteristic of a rotten dish.
- Elasticity. When pressed, the meat should return to its shape fairly quickly. If this does not happen and there is a sticky texture with a slimy coating, then the product is considered unsuitable.
- Taste. The finished chicken should not be sour.
If at least one of these properties is suspicious, refuse to eat it.
What are the dangers of eating spoiled chicken?
Eating spoiled chicken can cause foodborne illness, also known as food poisoning.
Typically, these bacteria are removed when you thoroughly cook fresh chicken.
However, you should still avoid cooking and eating spoiled chicken. Although heating or cooking food can kill the bacteria present in it, it will not eliminate some of the toxins produced by the bacteria, which can cause food poisoning if you eat it (8).
Food poisoning can cause unpleasant and sometimes dangerous symptoms, including high body temperature (above 38.6°C), chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, bloody stools, and dehydration (9).
In some cases, severe food poisoning can require hospitalization and even lead to death (10, 11).
If you suspect your chicken is spoiled, do not eat it. It's always best to discard chicken if you suspect it has gone bad.
Summary:
Eating spoiled chicken can cause food poisoning, even if it is thoroughly cooked.
Recommendations and lifehacks
When purchasing finished or raw products, adhere to the following recommendations:
- Carefully study the labeling and expiration dates indicated by the manufacturer.
- Assess the integrity of the packaging.
- When purchasing carcasses at the market or from farmers, inquire about the availability of appropriate sanitary documentation.
- Remember that spices and spices can drown out the taste of a spoiled dish. Buy ready-made food with caution.
- Externally, the carcass must be bloodless, clean, without foreign inclusions, odors, or blood clots.
- Small parts deteriorate faster.
- Adding salt extends the shelf life.
Interesting questions
We hope you found this guide informative and that it covers everything you need to know about storing fried chicken.
We have provided some common questions in the Q&A guide and invite you to review them for more information that may be helpful to you.
How do you know if fried chicken has gone bad?
When chicken begins to spoil, it usually shows obvious signs. If the chicken smells sour, it's probably bad and you should get rid of it and thoroughly clean all exposed areas to prevent cross-contamination.
Additionally, you can tell if a chicken has gone bad by looking at it. If it has taken on a slimy consistency or the color looks strange, you should dispose of it again immediately and clean the exposed areas.
The most delicious chicken kebab recipes
One of the most budget-friendly options is chicken kebab. It's quite simple to prepare. After all, the bird is fried for about half an hour and turns out quite tender. It is only important to choose the right marinade for chicken. To prepare shish kebab, it is better to use a store-bought carcass. A thigh without bone and skin is ideal. It turns out juicy and aromatic. You can also use breast meat, but it turns out rather dry.
