How Long Can Cooked Rice Be Left Out

How to know if leftover rice is prophylactic to consume

When to consume and when to throw. - past

You may have to throw cooked rice out before than the timeframe, depending on how the rice smells or what texture it has. It'southward of import to annotation that the 4-seven days dominion applies to white rice and wild rice, brown rice will actually expire faster.

How long does rice last in the fridge?

Cooked white rice lasts in the fridge for four to seven days. If yous stored your rice properly it will have a much longer shelf life. However, don't completely rely on this general rule: use your sense of smell or the rice's texture to assist you estimate if information technology'due south nevertheless condom to eat.

Does rice go off?

Yeah, your cooked rice tin can get off, and it goes off much faster depending on how it was stored . Here are a few signs that your rice is no longer prophylactic to eat.

Getty

It has a foreign smell. If your rice smells a flake funky and sour, that may be a sign that bacteria is already growing in your leftovers, so it'south best to throw information technology out.
Your rice is dry out, crumbly, and tough. Rice that's been in the fridge for too long will accept lost a lot of its moisture content. Fifty-fifty if information technology doesn't smell foreign yet, this is a red flag that indicates it's been sitting at that place too long.
The rice is slimy. This is a sign that rice had besides much wet when information technology was refrigerated; this promotes bacterial growth and leads to the first stages of fermentation.

If you've eaten rice that'south gone off, you may experience nutrient poisoning. The archetype symptoms of food poisoning are diarrhea, vomiting, and an upset tum. If yous have nutrient poisoning from your expired rice, drink plenty of water, avoid food for a few hours, and so slowly ease your breadbasket dorsum into gear by eating banal food similar bananas and saltines.

White rice in a white bowl next to black chopsticks

Getty

Does the rice diverseness make a difference?

White rice lasts a bit longer than another types, but not by much. Chocolate-brown rice, for case, lasts only four to five days in the fridge. This is because dark-brown rice is less processed than white rice, and the oils that make it healthier are also the reason why it expires faster.

Wild rice has the same expiry flow as white rice, lasting anywhere from 5 to seven days in the fridge.

Can you eat cold rice?

Common cold rice is just as prophylactic to eat as hot rice, although you may have problems with the texture. Use the same tips as recommended to a higher place to know if it's still okay to eat.

Can you freeze cooked rice?

Absolutely. Freezing your cooked rice is a bully fashion to ensure that you don't let any leftovers become rancid in your refrigerator, and y'all can conveniently defrost information technology whatever time for your meals. However, yous should add a trivial bit more than wet into your leftover rice – mayhap some olive oil or butter – considering information technology's lost a scrap of water through the freezing procedure.

Getty

Cooked rice in the fridge will final less than a week, simply frozen rice will have a shelf life anywhere from vi to eight months in your freezer earlier it's not okay to eat anymore. If you cook rice in large batches, storing it in airtight containers and freezing information technology is a good way to cut your repast prep time and eliminate nutrient wastage.

Tips for storing cooked rice

Let your rice cool properly before y'all put it in the fridge. Putting your rice in the refrigerator while information technology'south notwithstanding hot tin allow wet to pool and collect, which encourages bacterial growth and makes your rice spoil faster.
Apply airtight containers. Keep unwanted moisture out of refrigerated rice past using resealable plastic bags, or airtight containers. The less exposure to bacteria, the safer it volition be to eat the side by side mean solar day.
Only reheat what you lot're going to eat. Reheating and cooling your rice multiple times creates opportunities for bacteria to grow, so just get the portion you want to eat and heat that. If y'all accept too much leftover rice, freeze it.

When in uncertainty, throw information technology out

Proper storage is the key to avoiding food poisoning. If you lot're not sure if your cooked rice is still safety to eat, the smartest thing to do is to throw it in the bin. It may be wasteful, but information technology's amend than dealing with breadbasket cramps from spoiled leftovers. In the hereafter, put your cooked rice in the freezer if you're not going to eat information technology ASAP.

You lot might also like:

How long does salami last?

How long does coffee last?

How long does bacon terminal?

How long does an open canteen of wine final?