How Long Can Cooked Pork Sit Out? (Explained!)

What’s better than cooking some pork for a family dinner? Well, maybe cooking some pork without your family! Especially when they’re chatty, your mother-in-law or niece may get pretty annoying. 

And having to wait for them to finish talking before having to eat is not only irritating; it may also damage the meat itself:

How long can cooked pork sit out? The USDA says no cooked food, including pork, can sit out for more than two hours. Otherwise, it may be dangerous to eat. Therefore, you should never leave cooked pork outside of the fridge for more than two hours if you want to be sure it’s safe to eat.

But this was just to put it briefly because it is a bit more complicated. Don’t worry, though; everything you need to know will be uncovered in this article.

So without any further delay, let’s just get into it!

Does cooked pork need to be refrigerated?

Yes, cooked pork needs to be refrigerated if it should last for some time because it quickly turns bad outside the fridge. Pork can be dangerous to eat even after two hours when it sits out, at least according to the USDA.

Hence, refrigerating your pork is always recommended, no matter whether it is cooked or still raw.

How long can cooked pork sit out before it goes bad?

Cooked pork falls to the category of perishable food, which in the opinion of the USDA, means it shouldn’t be left out of the fridge for too long. To be entirely sure that it’s safe to eat, cooked pork can sit out for only two hours.

However, in most cases, cooked pork can be eaten even after three or four hours. After more than five hours, though, we highly recommend throwing the meat away because eating it is very dangerous.

Can cooked pork be left out overnight?

No, cooked pork cannot be left out overnight because it is dangerous to eat it just after two hours of sitting out. And even though often cooked pork is good to go even after four or five hours without refrigerating, leaving it out of the fridge overnight is simply too much.

How long can BBQ cooked pork sit out?

Pork prepared through grill, just like pretty much every other perishable food, should never be left out of the fridge for more than two hours, says the USDA. Therefore, BBQ cooked pork can sit out for no more than two hours.

The reason is that bacteria grow extremely quickly at room temperature, making food like cooked (and raw, too, for that matter) meat spoil fast.

How long can cooked pork chops sit out?

As the USDA says, no perishable food should ever sit out for more than two hours, and this goes for cooked pork chops as well. Hence, cooked pork chops should never sit out for more than two hours because otherwise, they might be dangerous to eat.

How long can cooked pulled pork sit out?

Although pulling (or shredding, if you will) meat makes it taste somehow different, it doesn’t make it last longer. According to the USDA, cooked pulled pork can sit out for just two hours, just like any other perishable food.

After two hours, cooked pulled pork may be dangerous to eat. So although most likely, pulled pork will be good until something like four hours pass, we still don’t recommend you eat it if you want to be entirely sure.

Cooked pork left out for 4 hours – is it ok?

As mentioned above, the USDA says perishable food, including cooked pork, should never be left out of the fridge for more than two hours. However, cooked pork should be safe to eat in most cases, even after four hours of sitting out. So yes, cooked pork left out for 4 hours is ok.

Cooked pork left out for 5 hours – is it ok?

According to what the USDA says, cooked pork can sit out for no more than two hours. And although in most cases, cooked pork is safe to eat even after something like three or four hours, 5 hours is probably simply too much. So no, cooked pork left out for 5 hours is not okay.

Why? Well, because of the very high bacteria’s activity at room temperature – since some of the bacteria might be very dangerous to you, eating food that was left out for too long usually isn’t safe.

How can you tell if cooked pork is bad?

Believe it or not, telling if cooked pork is bad isn’t anything hard! To tell if your cooked pork is bad, you just have to examine it a bit – firstly, take a good look and then a good sniff as well. Smelled or saw anything weird? If not, the cooked pork is good to go; otherwise, throw it away.

How do you keep cooked pork fresh?

The most important thing you have to do to keep your cooked pork as fresh as possible is to seal it into airtight containers. That way, no oxygen will be able to get to it, which will make it stay in better shape.

After that, don’t forget to put the now-filled airtight sealed bags into the fridge because room temperature can harm your cooked pork as well.

When you firstly seal it into some airtight containers and then put it into the fridge, you can expect your cooked pork to stay in excellent shape for even three days.

What happens when you eat bad cooked pork?

When you eat bad food, bad consequences can very likely occur. After eating bad cooked pork, there is a high chance you will get sick or, if you will, food poisoned. Some of the classic symptoms you may experience are diarrhea, stomach ache, or vomiting.

Summary

Cooked pork, just like pretty much any other cooked meat, cannot stay out of the fridge for too long – according to the USDA, cooked pork can sit for only two hours if you want to be entirely sure it’s safe to eat.

Nonetheless, we think that in most cases, cooked pork won’t be dangerous to eat until something like four or five hours passes. After that amount of time passes, though, eating it is not safe, so throw it away as soon as possible.

Related:

• How Long Can Cooked Salmon Sit Out?
• How Long Can Meatloaf Sit Out?
• How Long Can Brisket Sit Out?
• How Long Can Spaghetti Sit Out?
• How Long Can Lasagna Sit Out?

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Image credits – Canva