Fridge door got left open

[moocow]

Door got left open last night with the prime rib and bacon in there. Rib was 45 degrees when I found it and the bacon was 50 degrees. What should I do? Please help.

[Ron_L]

Do you have any idea how long they were above 40 degrees?

[Jorge]

I just wouldn't feel copmfortable serving it, without knowing how long it had been at that temp.

[Ribbin' Randy]

Let your nose be your guide. If it smells funky...If not, cook it.

[moocow]

Originally Posted by Ron_L

Do you have any idea how long they were above 40 degrees?

No idea, probably a couple hours. I went to the store and bought another this morning. It was 39 degrees when I got home.

[Bbq Bubba]

Technically 4 hrs over 40 degrees and bacteria MAY start.
Thats if the meat was sitting at room temp, unwrapped, blah blah blah.

You should be fine as long as theres no smell but bacteria can't start growing in that lil of a time frame.

[Ford]

Originally Posted by moocow

Door got left open last night with the prime rib and bacon in there. Rib was 45 degrees when I found it and the bacon was 50 degrees. What should I do? Please help.

With bacteria the question is what is the sirface temp of the meat. On a rib roast bacteria won't grow in the middle of the meat for a long time. But once the surface is above 40 it starts within 4 hours and can grow very quickly after 4 hours. So if it was all night then probably the surface temp was 40 or over within 3 hours and that means it was probably exposed to the danger zone for 5-8 hours. Based on that I'd say pitch it. Now the smell test won't work that fast so you can't really base a decision on smell. Good news is initial bacteria is not stuff that can usually kill you but it can upset the stomach even if it's killed by cooking. I just don't think it's worth a chance at Christmas.