[Brokenfriend]

Originally Posted by Mari

Huby often asks if it is safe to eat week old soup , beans, rice,.. . .

I tell him, NO.

He says, but what about this? And what about this?

I say, NO again. This is a constant conversation. Why not eat the soup within two days?

This time I had had enough.
I told him it was his decision but I would not sit with him in the ER waiting for the doctor to explain to him this:
Food can deteriorate as a result of two main factors:

1) growth of micro-organisms - usually from surface contaminations -- especially important in processed food

2) action of enzymes -- from within cells -- part of normal life process (responsible for respiration, for instance) . It is important to note that many plants -- fresh vegetalves and fruit are still alive even when raw, and meat from animals undergoes gradual chemical changes after slaughter.


He remains confused by #2 because there is no smell, no visible deterioration.
The bacteria release enzymes that are poisonous and that send people to the ER.


http://www.biotopics.co.uk/pot/foodsp.html

Also this: http://www.foodsafetysite.com/educat...lage/spg1.html

And this: http://busycooks.about.com/library/lessons/blrefrig.htm

M

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P.S.
He threw away the soup and found something else to eat.

Mari He may need to see it for himself. I've had several microscopes that show single cell life forms in creek,and lake water. I use to be amazed with the older microscopes.

Do they have a microscope at work that you can borrow. If he sees the germ world for himself,he may be frightened to eat anything till it's been cooked for hours.lol BF

[waves]

Originally Posted by Mari

Right they do not explain the enzyme thing very well but I spent a good amount of time looking and stopped there.
When foods breakdown (via normal bactria) the bacteria leave behind enzymes.

We cross posted, and yes... that's my problem with his point 2.

Hubby thinks as long as he "kills" the bacteria in the microwave, he is safe.
I tell him that the bacteria leave behind enzymes that are not "disappeared" by the microwave or any other cooking method.

He can sterilize the food but would have to bring to a boil in a pan and heat for 15-20 mins. If what is being reheated is not liquid, it should be immersed in liquid (often not ideal -- meat will become really tough).

I would not attempt to sterilize that way in a microwave. The problem (and he will know this) is that the distribution of water is uneven, hence the heating is uneven. Reheating in the microwave for the amount of time required for certain sterilizatioon of all parts of the food will render other parts of the food inedible (gummy, dehydrated, even charred... etc).

I tell him something like "compost" also.
I tell him that the food has already started becoming dirt and needs to go back to the earth.

[Mari]

The other links will not enlighten you more.
They are saying the same thing.
I gave up for tonight.

I also am not going to point things out to hubby -- like the importance of only buying what he will eat soon or put almost immediately in the freeze.
The next time he hands me cherries turned to mush/ 6 day old chicken/ and so on, I will tell him to make his own decision.

His beloved grandfather taught him the importance of not wasting food.
But his grandfather was talking about something entirely different -- nothing about 'saving' soup front the Chinese take out place.

Mari

[Mari]

Originally Posted by Brokenfriend

Mari He may need to see it for himself. I've had several microscopes that show single cell life forms in creek,and lake water. I use to be amazed with the older microscopes.

Do they have a microscope at work that you can borrow. If he sees the germ world himself,he may be frightened to eat anything till it's been cooked for hours.lol BF

I am almost certain I read that the bacteria create byproducts that essentially are poisonous to people.

M

[Brokenfriend]

We three all posted within the same several minutes. BF

[Mari]

Originally Posted by waves;1078256
I would not attempt to sterilize that way in a microwave. The problem (and he will know this) is that the distribution of water is uneven, hence the heating is uneven.
[IMG

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/images/styles/desert_sand/icons/icon14.gif[/IMG]

He goes by his version of the 80% rule which in his actions is closer to a 40% rule.

Mari

[Mari]

Originally Posted by Brokenfriend

Mari He may need to see it for himself. I've had several microscopes that show single cell life forms in creek,and lake water. I use to be amazed with the older microscopes.

Do they have a microscope at work that you can borrow. If he sees the germ world for himself,he may be frightened to eat anything till it's been cooked for hours.lol BF

Yes, that would work for most people.

Remember that he has autism-type/personality disorder traits and that he likes to stick to the method that has always and will always work for him.

I figure that as long as he does not feed it to guests (which he does not), then I can leave him alone from now on.

M

[Brokenfriend]

Originally Posted by Mari

Yes, that would work for most people.

Remember that he has autism-type/personality disorder traits and that he likes to stick to the method that has always and will always work for him.

I figure that as long as he does not feed it to guests (which he does not), then I can leave him alone from now on.

M

Hi Mari I didn't know about the autism-type disorder that he has. I imagine he gets sick if he eats older food. I worked in that supermarket,and our boss would put veggies that we had thrown away back on the sales counter because she felt like she was loosing money.

I buy food that has been rotated in the back of everything because that's the freshest. BF

[Brokenfriend]

Also make sure you don't buy barbecued food at the supermarket. It's usually made from older meat. It's a cooks secret. BF

[waves]

Mari,

Yes, we have been discussing the logic of things, but this may be more about habit, emotions, and attachment. The teaching of not wasting food from the grandfather would weigh significantly. Perhaps we can hope that, as evidenced by his asking you if the food is safe, he has suspicions brewing and these might slowly convince him.

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My father has emm "antiquated" ideas about cooking food (meat) and leaving it sit in the pan all day, then reheating for 2 mins and eating. Most of the time it's ok but it gets scary sometimes.

My late uncle's wife had a thing about not wasting food -- she ate a potato that had actually sprouted a plant, because she didn't want to waste it. We don't know if she was sick (probably) but no ER was involved. She was more than lucky with the dose of solanine she got.
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Just saying... he's not the only one. It's hard to live with these things, though. I hope your husband doesn't hurt himself.

waves