re: Need Gumbo Advice

quote:

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As long as it's reheated to the proper temp this danger is eliminated.

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This just isn't true. Some foodborne illness is caused by bacteria that sickens you directly by causing an infection. Others are caused by parasites in the food. Yet others are caused because some bacteria excrete toxins directly into the food before you eat it, which then poisons you.

Cooking the food in the first place should eliminate parasites as a risk by killing them and their eggs, so that vector is eliminated long before reheating time. Now, while it's true that reheating food to a safe temperature and holding it for several minutes will kill or force into a dormant state any bacteria that can directly sicken you that might be lurking in the food, it does not absolutely protect you against toxins that bacteria could have ALREADY released into the food while it stayed in the danger zone.

Some of the toxins that pathogenic bacteria can produce are heat stable and cannot be broken down at temperatures you typically see during a reheat. This is why surgical instruments are autoclaved and not simply boiled; 212 degrees isn't hot enough to sterilize everything and ensure that any toxins or such that might be on the tools get broken down. If the type of bacteria that poisons food got in that food and released toxins and then you later reheat it and eat it thinking you're fine because you brought the food back to a boil, you might be in for a bad few days.