Heating food: So dangerous are these common mistakes

Toxic or safe? If you want to reheat food, you risk a toxic surprise with certain foods. These things are off limits.

Warming up food is unhealthy here: eggs, spinach and potatoes are among the foods you should only warm up with caution.

It's not easy to watch everything, either. Since there is a trick how you can tell if the eggs are still good, but the traps in the kitchen also lurk when defrosting food or even in the form of disgusting ingredients in the food, which after all are not poisonous. However, it can become toxic if you reheat the wrong dishes. Here are the tricky foods.

Reheating Spinach: Toxic or safe?

In the past, there was a strict ban on reheating spinach. It dates back to a time when there were no refrigerators. Indeed, if spinach stands at room temperature for some time, bacteria can convert the nitrate it contains into nitrite. This in turn can lead to the development of carcinogenic nitrosamines. Today, spinach and other nitrate-containing vegetables such as fennel, kale, Brussels sprouts or eggplants may be reheated. However, on the condition that they be cooled very quickly after initial heating, such as in a bath of ice water, and then immediately placed in the refrigerator. As a precaution, babies and young children should not eat reheated spinach.

Reheat mushrooms: So it's not toxic

Warming up mushrooms used to be taboo as well. The reason is the protein they contain. Oxygen and bacteria decompose it, the resulting substances can harm health. Heat favors this process. In the refrigerator, these decomposition processes slow down. As with vegetables containing nitrates, it is important to cool mushrooms quickly after initial heating - in a water bath, for example - and then store them in a cold place (for no more than 24 hours). Then they should be heated to at least 70 degrees Celsius. Under no circumstances should mushroom dishes sit around at room temperature for long or be kept warm on the stovetop.

Reheat eggs: Salmonella risk

For eggs, there is always a salmonella risk. It prevails not only for raw eggs, but also for scrambled eggs, fried eggs or poached eggs. If they contain only the smallest amounts of salmonella, they multiply explosively at room temperature. Therefore, special precautions apply to eggs and egg dishes: Cool quickly, place immediately in a sealed container in the refrigerator, and store for no longer than 24 hours.

Reheating Chicken: Dangerous Risk

Like eggs, chicken can be the reservoir of Salmonella. Cooked chicken meat therefore cool quickly and quickly bring into the refrigerator. Do not keep it there for long, but process or eat it soon. In addition to the risk of salmonella, chicken meat risks changing its protein structure, which can cause digestive and stomach problems.

Reheat potatoes: Never wrap in an airtight container

Under no circumstances should cooked potatoes be wrapped in aluminum foil or placed in an airtight container. This is because botulism bacteria can multiply in the oxygen-free environment. The bacterium Clostridium botulinum grows without oxygen. It produces spores that die only at temperatures above 100 degrees. The neurotoxins produced by the bacterium are among the strongest known poisons. If you are cooking potatoes for storage, you should put them in the refrigerator while they are still warm to cool them down. Then, when reheating, be sure to heat them above 100 degrees.

Heating Rice: Toxic and full of invisible spores

Raw rice may contain Bacillus cereus. These are spore-shaped bacteria that are harmless in small amounts. However, when they germinate, they produce toxins that cause diarrhea and nausea. Bacillus cereus survives cooking and can multiply if rice is kept warm below 65°C or reheated. Therefore, like potatoes, do not allow cooked rice to cool at room temperature, but place it in the refrigerator immediately. When heating, make sure all rice is steaming hot.

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