How Long Does Meal Prep Really Last in the Fridge? The USDA Rule, Day by Day

Meal prep has a clock on it. The USDA says leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days or frozen for 3 to 4 months. This video walks through what that means for a Sunday cook: the day-by-day count, the 40°F refrigerator, the 2-hour limit, shallow containers, freezing, thawing and reheating to 165°F. We did not cook or test any meal prep: every number is from the sources below. The "count from the day you cooked" reading and the freeze-by-day-4 plan are our own cautious suggestions, not wording from the USDA page. Quick answers Refrigerator: 3 to 4 days (USDA FSIS). A Sunday cook makes Thursday day 4, the last day inside that window. Refrigerator temperature: 40°F or below (FDA); bacteria grow rapidly between 40°F and 140°F (USDA). Get cooked food refrigerated within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F). Divide big batches into shallow containers; Mississippi State Extension: limit depth of food to 2 inches. Freezer: 3 to 4 months for best quality; safe indefinitely but can lose moisture and flavor (USDA). Reheat to 165°F, covered; in a microwave rotate the food and check several spots. Left out at room temperature more than 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F)? Throw it away. This covers cooked leftovers. Raw salad greens and cut fruit have their own rules, not covered here. Not sponsored. Pictures marked ILLUSTRATION are illustrations made for this video, not photos of a real test. Sources: USDA FSIS, Leftovers and Food Safety (updated Jul 31, 2020): https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety... FDA, Are You Storing Food Safely? (current as of 01/18/2023): https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consume... Mississippi State University Extension, Cooling and Refrigerating Food: https://happyhealthy.extension.msstat... NC State Extension, Keeping Leftovers Safe (Feb 2, 2022): https://brunswick.ces.ncsu.edu/2022/0... Credits Narration: Andrew (Azure neural voice) Pictures: original illustrations (labelled ILLUSTRATION on screen); cards drawn by Healthy Living Scout Footage: none Music: "Daily Beetle" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... ━━ MORE SCOUTS ━━ XP Scout (the games worth playing):    / @xpscoutgames   Fitness Scout (fitness questions, checked against the research):    / @fitscout-54   Whats For Dinner (what to cook, and what it really costs):    / @dinner_scout