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Eating Pizza Left Out Overnight: Is It Safe?
It happens to all of us.
We order a large pizza with every intention of finishing it for dinner, but it just doesn’t happen.
Then, we wake up the next morning to find that we’ve forgotten to put the leftovers in the fridge and they have been on the counter all night.
But those slices still look oh-so-tempting and delicious, and we can’t help wanting to eat them.
So, can you eat pizza left out overnight or is it dangerous? We’re here to provide you with the answer.
Can You Eat Pizza Left Out Overnight?
Unfortunately, as mouthwatering as those leftover slices may look in the morning if you accidentally leave pizza out on the counter overnight it’s best to throw it away.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), bacteria begin to accumulate on food after being left at room temperature for just two hours.
To avoid bacteria accumulation, food must be kept in a strict temperature-controlled environment.
It must be either over or under a certain temperature at all times.
What that means is that the pie you left out overnight has spent hours gathering bacteria. While you can’t see these bacteria with the naked eye, they are there nonetheless.
When you consume pizza that has been sitting on the counter overnight, you consume the bacteria that’s been growing on it too.
This increases your chance of contracting a foodborne illness–or getting what many people commonly refer to as food poisoning.
What that means is that the pie you left out overnight has spent hours gathering bacteria. While you can’t see these bacteria with the naked eye, they are there nonetheless.
When you consume pizza that has been sitting on the counter overnight, you consume the bacteria that’s been growing on it too.
This increases your chance of contracting a foodborne illness–or getting what many people commonly refer to as food poisoning.
While the effects are not likely to cause serious lasting illness, consuming food that has accumulated dangerous bacteria can certainly cause unpleasant side effects.
These include nausea, vomiting, and other gastrointestinal issues.
Eating that left out leftover slice could keep you in bed for the day, something that nobody wants.
What to Do with Leftover Pizza
Instead of leaving pizza out on the counter overnight, when you package and store it properly leftover pizza can actually last in the fridge for up to four days.
This is a much better alternative to having to toss last night’s slices.
You can either wrap your leftover pizza in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store it at a temperature below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, or place it in an airtight storage container or Tupperware to store in the fridge.
You can even freeze those leftover slices using the same method, which will keep them good for up to three months. That leftover pizza doesn’t have to go to waste!
Reheating Your Leftover Pizza
Can you eat pizza left out overnight if you reheat it?
This is another common question we hear, as many people believe that returning the food to a proper temperature will kill off any bacteria that has accumulated.
Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case, and reheating pizza left out overnight may still pose a medical risk.
It’s best to throw the pizza away if you realize that you have left it out overnight.
However, if you have leftover slices waiting for you in the fridge or freezer, you’re in luck. Reheating cold pizza is simple, takes just a few minutes, and is perfectly safe.
If your slices are frozen, you’ll need the defrost them in the refrigerator before reheating for the best results–this can take 8-12 hours.
If your slices are straight out of the fridge, simply pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, place the individual slices on a baking sheet, and pop them in the oven to ten to fifteen minutes.
It’s also important to note that even if your leftover slices fall within the timeframe deemed “safe” to eat them, there are signs that you should throw them away regardless.
If you notice that the pizza has any green mold or discoloration, or if it has a strong odor, toss it right away.
Sadly, if your pizza has been sitting out for more than two hours it is not safe to eat. According to the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA), all perishable foods, including pizza, are not safe to eat after sitting at room temperature overnight.
This rule holds true whether your pizza has meat on it or not.
The USDA indicates a “danger zone” for perishable foods stored at temperates between 40 degrees fahrenheit and 140 degrees fahrenheit.
The number of food borne illnesses can double every 20 minutes that a food is left out in the “danger zone.”
If your pizza has been sitting in the fridge…
Lucky you. According to the USDA, if your pizza has been refrigerated at a temperature lower than 40 degrees fahrenheit, its safe to eat up to four days.
If you want to eat a slice thats been sitting in the fridge for five days, it’s generally okay too—but after four days your risk of getting a food borne illness increases and who wants that?
It’s much safer to just order another pizza.
Can You Eat Pizza Left Out Overnight?
Being the type of person who shoves leftovers pizzas in the oven and leaves them there in the hopes of returning later the same day to devour the last slices can be extremely rewarding when everything goes according to plan.
There’s just something special about leftover pizza. However, because I have an inability to remember the simplest of tasks, I tend to forget my pizzas in the oven overnight.
The sheer thought of knowing that the pizza has been out overnight can be a bit nasty and for good reason.
Visually inspecting the food isn’t enough when it’s been out for a couple of hours. It will take a long time before you can see the effects with your bare eye.
So, how cautious should one be when it comes to pizza?
According to the US Department of Agriculture, you shouldn’t eat a pizza that’s been left out overnight.
The risk of leaving perishable food out overnight is that it can be contaminated with food-borne illnesses.
However, I do recommend refrigerating your leftover pizza slices at all times.
I have done it a couple of times too, and I have never felt sick.
But, as always, it’s good to be cautious and keep note of how you’re feeling.
The ingredients on the pizza will determine the impact.
Cheese, tomato sauce, yeast-based bread, and veggies can usually handle a night at room temperature without spoiling.
Tomato sauce is too acidic to promote any bacterial growth of that kind, cheese has undergone lactic acid fermentation and has low pH, and the bread isn’t large or thick enough to retain the warmth and moist needed to grow bacillus.
Ham and other ingredients can be trickier though.
Pizza
Pizza (Italian: [ˈpittsa], Neapolitan: [ˈpittsə]) is a dish of Italian origin consisting of a usually round, flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomatoes, cheese, and often various other ingredients (such as anchovies, mushrooms, onions, olives, pineapple, meat, etc.), which is then baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.[1] A small pizza is sometimes called a pizzetta. A person who makes pizza is known as a pizzaiolo.