Is Leftover Food Safe to Eat?
Perhaps many people believe that overnight dishes contain carcinogens so that they should never be eaten. Moreover, there are more and more rumors that foods can cause cancers. Many people over time are afraid to eat leftovers. However, is leftover food really carcinogenic?
First of all, we need to make it clear that leftovers do not only refer to the dishes that have been left overnight. Actually, if food is left for more than 8-9 hours after being cooked, it can be called leftovers. The reason why we consider these foods can cause cancers is that leftovers will produce nitrite. Nitrite itself is not carcinogenic, but it will be converted into ammonium nitrite which is a kind of Class A carcinogen under the effect of gastric acid. The nitrite content of overnight dishes does increase, but it is too small to reach the standard of poisoning and causing cancers.
Of course, this does not mean that eating leftover meals is absolutely safe. In case of improper storage, problems like food spoilage and bacteria breeding would occur, easily enhancing the risk of gastrointestinal infections. Therefore, the greatest damage results from the inappropriate storage method instead of the "overnight". The healthiest way is to eat fresh food and try to prepare and serve right at the table. However, if you have to go to work on weekdays and cannot eat at home regularly, you can do the food preparation and store it in the refrigerator to reduce the production of nitrite. Be sure to select the well-sealed food canisters. And before eating, remember to reheat the food thoroughly and avoid heating repeatedly, better preventing the loss of moisture and nutritional values.
There are two kinds of food that are not recommended to be leftovers:
1. Leafy Green Vegetables
Compared with other foods, the leftover leafy green vegetables are higher in nitrite. What's more, they are also rich in water-soluble nutrients so repeated heating will have a great influence on nutrients and tastes. Other vegetables, such as root vegetables and mushrooms, can be left if you can't finish them.
2. Seafood
In the process of repeated heating, the protein in the seafood will be degraded, and the unsaturated fatty acid will be easily damaged, which is not conducive to hepatic and renal function. And as time goes by, the fishy smell of seafood will become more unpleasant, with seafood tasting worse.
Although eating overnight dishes is not healthy, it can't be an excuse for wasting food wantonly. The material conditions and living standards of people are gradually improving, while food does not come easily. So in order to reduce waste, try to control the amount of food when cooking. If there are leftovers, please remember to consider what can be discarded and preserve the rest properly.