There are millions of people who simply love yogurt and consider it a perfect snack at all times. It often happens that many people simply go to their refrigerators and just pick some yogurt form there as a snack in the afternoon. However, it often happens that the yogurt in the fridge is actually bad and more than once it has surely happened to you to wonder if the yogurt in the fridge is good and not gone bad.
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How long can it be out of the fridge?
Source: Entity Mag
There have been various theories but the answer to this question is pretty straightforward – only 2 hours. Yes, that is right! If you put yogurt out of the fridge, and you put it on the room temperature, it can stand like this for about 2 hours before it goes bad. You should not think that this is only about yogurt, the same thing goes for all milk-related products.
So, the average and usual time that a yogurt can be outside the fridge is 2 hours, but there are many factors that may make this time even shorter. We need to stress out the importance that yogurt can be outside the fridge for two hours only and just only when it is on the room temperature and not in some hot space. If the temperature in the room has gone to more than 90 degrees Fahrenheit, you can bet on your life that that yogurt has already gone bad. In some similar cases, it goes bad even faster on such high temperatures.
It should be noted that all dairy products have some live and active bacteria in them and these bacteria are very good for digestion. However, if left on the open for a longer period of time, they simply go bad.
How should we know that it is bad?
Source: Respect Food
There are various ways in which you can check whether your yogurt has gone bad. And they are:
1. Expiration date – always check if you are using the yogurt which is within the expiration date.
2. Mold – if there is mold, or fungus, of any type anywhere in or on your yogurt, be sure that it has been contaminated.
3. Consistency – the yogurt should look like one. If it seems that your yogurt has become somewhat watery, it has already gone bad. It needs to be added that there is usually water on the top of yogurt, and this is alright.
4. Smell – the smell is one of the best indicators that yogurt has gone bad. So, if something smells funny about your yogurt – just throw it away.
You ate spoiled yogurt
If it happens that you have tasted or eaten yogurt that has gone bad, you will not die and major poisoning will not happen. It can just happen that you will probably experience some kind of cramps in your stomach. Apart from this, it may happen that you start vomiting or even ending up with having diarrhea.
Proper storage
Source: Consumer Reports
In order to avoid eating bad yogurt and thus poisoning, you need to make sure of the following:
1. Yogurt should be always kept in the fridge at the temperatures that go below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. If you do this, the yogurt that was not opened can stay like this for entire two weeks.
2. If you have an unopened yogurt, but you know that it would not be used for a longer period of time, there is an option to simply freeze it. Yogurt can sit like this for entire three months and the best thing is that it would not change its taste in any way.
3. If you eat some of it, return the rest into the fridge and make sure it is properly sealed.
4. If you forgot to do this, you can return it to the fridge after some time, but note that it cannot stay like that for a long time.
5. If you decide to make yogurt by yourself, it is essential to put it into the fridge after setting. It should be also added that it should be firm in texture and if there is a problem in its setting – the best thing is to throw it away.
