I left honey ham sandwhich meat on the counter for 14 hours, is it still good?!
Answers: It's the chipped ham bought at the deli. I also left swiss cheese out as well. Something tells me it is okay to eat but I also have my doubts because it is pork. They were both sealed in ziplock bags. I'd hate to throw them away as they're both almost a full pound!
Smell it. If it smells bad throw it out. If it smells like ham and cheese eat it. Hmmm I think I know whats for lunch. Thank you.
it's good,the deli meat is fully cooked
what do you think lunchs for working men were made of
bite it and wait to see if it makes you wanna go take a crap. if it does then ... well its bad. and if it doesn't then your good. and your not hungry anymore
sealed in ziplock bags?!?!?! obviously safe! the meats not raw so its fine.
and , well, even if the cheese did go mouldy, the mould on cheese is penicillin, which is good for you.
Dont take the chance, wether its been cooked or not all meat products still have some enzymes in them that can develope in to perfect breeding grounds for illnesses. And same with the cheese its made with dairy cultures which can containe enzymes that breed illnesses. So dont take that chance. I personally if anything from the fridge has been out for more then 2 hrs in my house gets thrown away and we buy new. Taking that bite just cause you think its safe isnt worth ending up in the bathroom later bringing it back up and regretting the decision.
There is a good chance that the ham will make you sick if you eat it. Just because it is cooked doesn't mean that it is safe. Lunch meat is kept in the refrigerator to keep it from growing bacteria. Lunch meat, cheese, raw meat, cooked foods should all be kept at a temperature either below 40 degrees F or above 140 degrees F. The range between 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit is often referred to as the "danger zone" for food. It is recommended that foods not be kept in the danger zone for longer than two hours. After that two hours, the level of bacteria that has grown on the food increases exponentially. Leaving food on the counter is actually mentioned as a cause of food poisoning on WebMD:
"Food poisoning is an illness caused by eating foods that have harmful organisms in them. These harmful germs can include bacteria, parasites, and viruses. They are mostly found in raw meat, chicken, fish, and eggs, but can spread to any type of food. They can also grow on food that is left out on counters or outdoors or is stored too long before you eat it."
It is also untrue that all food that can cause food poisoning tastes bad. There are hundreds of thousands of cases of food poisoning a year and I am sure that the food that most of those people ate did not taste spoiled. If all food that caused illness tasted bad, hardly anyone would eat it and hardly anyone would get sick.
The ziplock bags really don't make a difference since the bacteria was already on the food in a very tiny amount to begin with. In the end, you just have to ask yourself if you think that not throwing it in the trash is worth the risk of getting sick.