NWR, potlucks (not for your wedding!!!)

Jessica2426 · October 2014

ok, so maybe because iI am older this is different for me. but iI keep.seeing everyone talk about food poisoning and stuff. heres my question. have any of you guys been to a potluck for anything?? like a sports banquet or anything?? people bring food to those and they normally sit for awhile then people eat and iI have never seen anyone get sick. also, growing up my brothers and iI (and just about every other person we knew) brought mayo on our sandwiches or cheese or even egg salad and we didnt have insulated lunch boxes or anything like that. we never got sick. lol

anyways, what is everyones opinion on how long you can leave stuff out say if your having a bday party or any other kind of party.

Jessica2426 · October 2014

ok, iI ask now because everyone has me paranoid and we are going to a potluck tomorrow. the internet is no help :-/ some sites say 4-5 hours some say 8-9. thats a big big difference.

[Deleted User] · October 2014

Jessica2426 · October 2014

I feel even chips after like an hour taste stale. But sometimes they r just there so you eat them anyways :-(

doeydo · October 2014

When I was growing up, my mom was really involved in the church we went to. When they would have dinners (our church was the stake so it would hold a lot of events) she would always bring a dish or two, as the whole thing was "potluck". We were LDS, and you get little jobs to do for everything, so it is not like everyone is bringing a dish, but anyways. No one that I remember got sick. However, it sucked for me being a Celiac because I could only eat what I knew was GF.

chibiyui · October 2014

A lot of it depends on the kind of food. I might eat fried chicken a few hours later but no way in hell am I eating casseroles or salads of any sort that have been out for more then a few hours.

I don't personally know anyone who got food poisoning at a potluck, but I have seen been victim to upset stomachs.

Some people just suck at cooking.

AddieCake · October 2014

For me, it depends on the food. If something has been sitting out and looks questionable, I won't eat it. But I don't eat perfectly hot/cold/fresh food that looks questionable to me, either (I'm a picky eater).

Also, I just think it's different for weddings. Like the expectations are different. If I go to a work potluck or family reunion potluck, I know that's what I'm going to, and I can choose not to go if I don't like it. Or if I go and get sick, ok, that sucks, but I feel more in control of my choice.

For a wedding, yes, I can choose not to go if I don't want potluck, but perhaps not everyone knows it is going to be potluck, and then you get there and are "Ewwww," but your choices are to eat or go hungry. And am I really going to NOT go to your WEDDING b/c it's potluck? Probably not, depending on who you are or how close we are. I mean, it's your WEDDING. I don't want a potluck to keep me from that, you know? And people getting sick at a wedding from the food just makes a bigger impact, so to speak. Not good if they get sick at the office Christmas party, but even worse if your WEDDING is associated with people getting sick.

Does that make sense?

huskypuppy14 · October 2014

I've been to ton of potlucks. But usually the food is in a crockpot if it's hot, or it goes in the fridge if it's cold. I would never eat food that was left out at room temp for hours. I think technically, you shouldn't eat food that's been left out at room temp for more than 2 hours without reheating it.

I've also gotten food poisoning from a catered birthday party (half the guests got sick), and never from a potluck.

ETA: 4-5 hours is way too long, and 8-9 is insane.

MGP · October 2014

Let's apply the 80/20 rule to potlucks:

20% of the people will make 80% of the food

(the remaining 80% who didn't pull their weight are always the first in line to eat too)

20% will be delicious, 80% will range from OK to downright disgusting

20% will be prepared and held to commercial/health department standards, 80% will not

20% will be proteins, 80% will be veg and starches (heavy on starches because they usually cost less)

80% (probably 100%) of the guests will devour the 20% protein, and there will be 80% of the veg and starches leftover

So in other words you have a less than 1% chance of getting a delicious, properly prepared meal at a potluck. Why take that risk?

And any couple who does a potluck for their wedding is 100% tacky.

ohannabelle · October 2014

For the record, I was actually food poisoned at a potluck at work, along with at least four other people that I personally know of. There may have been more people who didn't confide in me that they were crapping every five minutes, and I'm grateful for the lack of information.

Agree with MGP that 99% of what's served at potlucks is crap. Crap that I would personally be embarrassed to serve to guests in my home. On top of that, it looks ugly, and rarely comes together in a cohesive, appetizing menu. Nothing goes together nicely. Lots of dried out lukewarm shit, of dubious quality.

Viczaesar · October 2014

Jessica2426 said:

ok, so maybe because iI am older this is different for me. but iI keep.seeing everyone talk about food poisoning and stuff. heres my question. have any of you guys been to a potluck for anything?? like a sports banquet or anything?? people bring food to those and they normally sit for awhile then people eat and iI have never seen anyone get sick. also, growing up my brothers and iI (and just about every other person we knew) brought mayo on our sandwiches or cheese or even egg salad and we didnt have insulated lunch boxes or anything like that. we never got sick. lol

anyways, what is everyones opinion on how long you can leave stuff out say if your having a bday party or any other kind of party.

I go to potlucks all the time. I also bring food to non-potluck events when I know it's welcome; I'm thinking of doing that on Monday, as a matter of fact. I have also witnessed first-hand food poisoning from potlucks (not from my food, thankfully!).

Viczaesar · October 2014

Jessica2426 said:

ok, iI ask now because everyone has me paranoid and we are going to a potluck tomorrow. the internet is no help :-/ some sites say 4-5 hours some say 8-9. thats a big big difference.

I'm in charge of my local Red Cross Mass Care team, which includes Feeding. Our guideline is the rule of 4 - no more than 4 hours between 40 and 140 degrees. Once a hot food item drops below 140 degrees the clock starts, and once a cold food item is above 40 degrees the clock starts. 4 hours is the absolute max amount of time.

ETA: reread OP and realized what 4-5 or 8-9 was referring to. Definitely not 8-9! Even 5 hours is too long.

MGP · October 2014

Viczaesar said:

Jessica2426 said:

ok, iI ask now because everyone has me paranoid and we are going to a potluck tomorrow. the internet is no help :-/ some sites say 4-5 hours some say 8-9. thats a big big difference.

I'm in charge of my local Red Cross Mass Care team, which includes Feeding. Our guideline is the rule of 4 - no more than 4 hours between 40 and 140 degrees. Once a hot food item drops below 140 degrees the clock starts, and once a cold food item is above 40 degrees the clock starts. 4 hours is the absolute max amount of time.

ETA: reread OP and realized what 4-5 or 8-9 was referring to. Definitely not 8-9! Even 5 hours is too long.

You are extremely close. The "danger zone" for food borne illness is food held at 41 to 135 degrees for more than 4 hours. And besides cold food at more than 41 and hot food at less than 135 doesn't taste the best anyways. Even more reason to leave things up to professional, paid workers.

MGP · October 2014

ohannabelle said:

For the record, I was actually food poisoned at a potluck at work, along with at least four other people that I personally know of. There may have been more people who didn't confide in me that they were crapping every five minutes, and I'm grateful for the lack of information.

Agree with MGP that 99% of what's served at potlucks is crap. Crap that I would personally be embarrassed to serve to guests in my home. On top of that, it looks ugly, and rarely comes together in a cohesive, appetizing menu. Nothing goes together nicely. Lots of dried out lukewarm shit, of dubious quality.

Ohannabelle I like your style!

. Exactly - ugly, non cohesive, and gross perfectly describes every potluck I have seen.

For the record I was not food poisoned but I had a severe allergic reaction to a home cooked/store bought hybrid mess of a baby shower that I was banned from bringing food to (I was told they had everything under control and didn't need help). Someone had to drive me to the ER for an Epi pen shot while my BFF opened gifts. Not fun times.

Jessica2426 · October 2014

See... everyone has me so paranoid now!! Lol. I am just going to eat b4 I go. Lol.
And I got food poisoning at applebees. Not just me, about 20 people a few years ago. But also never at a potluck. But I am picky too.

Viczaesar · October 2014

MGP said:

Viczaesar said:

Jessica2426 said:

ok, iI ask now because everyone has me paranoid and we are going to a potluck tomorrow. the internet is no help :-/ some sites say 4-5 hours some say 8-9. thats a big big difference.

I'm in charge of my local Red Cross Mass Care team, which includes Feeding. Our guideline is the rule of 4 - no more than 4 hours between 40 and 140 degrees. Once a hot food item drops below 140 degrees the clock starts, and once a cold food item is above 40 degrees the clock starts. 4 hours is the absolute max amount of time.

ETA: reread OP and realized what 4-5 or 8-9 was referring to. Definitely not 8-9! Even 5 hours is too long.

You are extremely close. The "danger zone" for food borne illness is food held at 41 to 135 degrees for more than 4 hours. And besides cold food at more than 41 and hot food at less than 135 doesn't taste the best anyways. Even more reason to leave things up to professional, paid workers.

I may be close to the "danger zone," but I'm exactly on track for the Red Cross's policy, which is what I said. The guideline for Feeding is no more than 4 hours between 40 and 140.

lovesclimbing · October 2014

MGP said:

Let's apply the 80/20 rule to potlucks:

20% of the people will make 80% of the food
(the remaining 80% who didn't pull their weight are always the first in line to eat too)
20% will be delicious, 80% will range from OK to downright disgusting
20% will be prepared and held to commercial/health department standards, 80% will not
20% will be proteins, 80% will be veg and starches (heavy on starches because they usually cost less)
80% (probably 100%) of the guests will devour the 20% protein, and there will be 80% of the veg and starches leftover

So in other words you have a less than 1% chance of getting a delicious, properly prepared meal at a potluck. Why take that risk?

And any couple who does a potluck for their wedding is 100% tacky.

I agree that potluck weddings are tacky. However, I disagree entirely with your 80/20 rule. I have been to more than my fair share of potlucks (church potlucks are pretty popular). For Fourth of July this year, I was at a huge town potluck. Probably 70-80 people or more.

I tried almost every dish, and all of them were delicious. There was plenty of meat. Certainly some pasta and starchy dishes but plenty of protein ones as well. There were about 30 different dishes, not including deserts. Certainly, everybody didn't bring a dish, but that's because half the people there were children. I would say pretty much every family brought at least one dish.

Also, I have never gotten food poisoning from a potluck, and I don't know anyone who has. I think the risk of that is over exaggerated by some people on these boards (in general, not aimed at you @MGP). In fact, the only person I know who has gotten food poisoning got it from some peaches at what is considered one of the fanciest restaurants in the city (a smallish city of about 80,000).

wandajune6 · October 2014

I was hospitalized after a school potluck in 3rd grade.

I'm not a fan of potlucks in general, mainly due to the variety of reasons the PPs have listed. FI's family is huge and handles big family parties with a hybrid approach- the host provides an entree or two - then everyone just brings a dish or something else. We also have it coordinated- crockpots, coolers (used even when indoors if there are huge groups), and warmer trays. 2 of my FSILs have worked food service so everyone is very careful about safety.

Maggie0829 · October 2014

Jessica2426 said:

See... everyone has me so paranoid now!! Lol. I am just going to eat b4 I go. Lol. And I got food poisoning at applebees. Not just me, about 20 people a few years ago. But also never at a potluck. But I am picky too.

Just use your common sense. If something looks questionable or not appealing don't eat it.

I haven't been to many potlucks but if I go to someone's home for a birthday party or bbq and they have a buffet of food sitting out I will eat what looks good to me (both appetizing and not questionable) while I leave the rest behind.

I am a picky eater so when I go to things like this I tend to grab two rolls just so I have something that can fill me up if the rest of the food isn't to my liking.

vh2014 · October 2014

Never gotten food poisoning from a potluck but there have been a few dishes I have passed on when they did "food days" at work because I knew who prepared them. My family loves to bring a dish and I have one aunt that won't show up with something in hand- usually fruit or a yummy hot dip.

In this day and age of inexpensive crockpots and trays you put in the freezer to keep things cold there should be little reason to let things get to "bad temperatures". I have a couple of parties a year at the house that my BFF and I do all the cooking for and we have never had a food poisoning problem or anything shy of a few people surprised by the alcohol content in some of the drinks.

I hired a caterer for my wedding... and even the "welcome party" and didn't try and prepare anything myself. For an event that important I wanted to make sure everything was right and I had someone else to make it right if it wasn't.

For other events... you can always ask... "oh those meatballs look fabulous... who made them?" "Oh really... doesn't she live 3 hours away... did she get here early to make them? How sweet of her." And other polite questions so that you can skip anything you consider questionable. I usually ask what's in things... I am a picky eater and some foods just don't like me much either so I've had lots of practice phrasing things to not insult, but get me the information I need. My worries are more about the cleanliness of the kitchen they were made in when I am at something where there's a wide variety of people bringing something... like work or a civic group.

southernbelle0915 · October 2014

I am a foodie and NOT a picky eater in the sense that I will try almost anything. I like being adventurous with food.

I AM a picky eater in the sense that I won't waste calories on things that are 1) prepared like shit, 2) not fresh and 3) probably bad for me. Those three things cover about 99% of the stuff people bring to potlucks.

So not only is it just kind of "ugh...." but it's also terrible hosting. Or actually, it's not hosting at all. It's rudely organizing what should be a hosted event.

MGP · October 2014

lovesclimbing said:

MGP said:

Let's apply the 80/20 rule to potlucks:

20% of the people will make 80% of the food
(the remaining 80% who didn't pull their weight are always the first in line to eat too)
20% will be delicious, 80% will range from OK to downright disgusting
20% will be prepared and held to commercial/health department standards, 80% will not
20% will be proteins, 80% will be veg and starches (heavy on starches because they usually cost less)
80% (probably 100%) of the guests will devour the 20% protein, and there will be 80% of the veg and starches leftover

So in other words you have a less than 1% chance of getting a delicious, properly prepared meal at a potluck. Why take that risk?

And any couple who does a potluck for their wedding is 100% tacky.

I agree that potluck weddings are tacky. However, I disagree entirely with your 80/20 rule. I have been to more than my fair share of potlucks (church potlucks are pretty popular). For Fourth of July this year, I was at a huge town potluck. Probably 70-80 people or more.

I tried almost every dish, and all of them were delicious. There was plenty of meat. Certainly some pasta and starchy dishes but plenty of protein ones as well. There were about 30 different dishes, not including deserts. Certainly, everybody didn't bring a dish, but that's because half the people there were children. I would say pretty much every family brought at least one dish.

Also, I have never gotten food poisoning from a potluck, and I don't know anyone who has. I think the risk of that is over exaggerated by some people on these boards (in general, not aimed at you @MGP). In fact, the only person I know who has gotten food poisoning got it from some peaches at what is considered one of the fanciest restaurants in the city (a smallish city of about 80,000).

The tone of my post was somewhat sarcastic. Guess that didn't come through as much as I wanted.

Potlucks are not the worst thing in the world. Some people are fantastic home cooks and could throw down with the best of professionals. There are tons of cooking shows where Grandma takes down a five star chef and that's awesome.

Personally I do not enjoy them and have never had a great experience at them, partially because 1) I am a control freak, 2) I am seriously quality driven with what I choose to eat, 3) I am paranoid about food prep, and 4) I like logistical, cohesive meals. So I just choose to not attend or participate. I just think you have a much better chance getting a safe, enjoyable meal without involving so many people. There is a saying about too many cooks in the kitchen for a reason.

But potlucks are never and will never be OK for a wedding.

Viczaesar · October 2014

Hell, I made Bailey's Irish Cream Brownies for a gathering today just for the hell of it (it was a catered luncheon, but I've been told that I'm always welcome to bring something if I want to because I'm famous for my baking). I brought half of the brownies to the grad lounge for the grad students in my department. I love potlucks. But yes, food safety is a legitimate concern that should be taken seriously, and hosted events (like weddings) should never be potlucks.

koriemo · October 2014

Food Safety and Sanitation Certified here!

In my state, the maximum time out of the "safe" temperature is 4 hours.

atlastmrsg · October 2014

All of this reflects reasons why I don't go to potluck events. Or if I have to go to events that are potluck, I drop in to say hi then go out to eat somewhere else.

NWR, potlucks (not for your wedding!!!)

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