Food Safety -- How long in an empty cooler?

[Henry Joe Peterson]

Whenever I cook a brisket or a butt I do the empty cooler method to keep it warm. The meat goes right form the pit into a double wrap of heavy duty foil. The foil-wrapped meat is then swaddled in old car-wash towels, and left to rest in an empty cooler for at least an hour, sometimes 2 or 3 hours.

Standard food safety rules dictate that meat not drop below 140.

My question is, how long can I leave the wrapped meat in the cooler before it starts to get dangerous?

 

[Jim Minion]

If your taking from the cooker and wrapping as you say your are not going to have a problem. The meat temps are not going to 140? in the time frame.
Jim

 

[Chris Allingham]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Henry Joe Peterson:
[qb]...how long can I leave the wrapped meat in the cooler before it starts to get dangerous?[/qb] <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>I stick a Polder in the meat and monitor the temp from outside the ice chest to make sure it doesn't drop below 140*F. Mine stay over 140*F for at least 3 hours.

Regards,
Chris

 

[Guest]

If you're concerned, you can enhance your situation by warming the "cooler". I always run hot tap water in the cooler {need a better term for that insulated box!} before using it. My thinking is that if I start with a warm cooler {see! sounds odd!!}, the transfer of heat from the meat to the walls of the cooler will be slowed. Thus, the meat stays warmer, longer.
While sitting in the cooler.

-- Ken

 

[Henry Joe Peterson]

I have yet to snake the polder out of the cooler to watch the temp. I'll try that next time. Just wondering if any of you had.

Reason why I asked was my Superbowl brisket. I put it on at 10:30 PM and it came off at 10:30 AM. I was hesitant to leave it wrapped in the cooler until 3 PM, so I double wrapped it in foil with some apple juice and put it in the oven at 175, as low as my oven would go. I didn't want it to continue cooking, just hold steady at a safe to eat temp. Nor did I want the oven time to magically transform my 12-hour smoked brisket into a pot roast. Fortunately it didn't, and everyone enjoyed the brisket. My 20 month old boy was following me around the house demanding samples saying "MEAT!"

But the process did leave me curious about how long I could safely use the cooler method. I'll try the polder method next time.

 

[DaveMcK]

I guess you've sponned another Q'er. Good work HJ!