How Long Can A Raw Chicken Last in the Fridge?

Cooked chicken keeps for three to four days in the refrigerator while raw chicken only lasts one to two days. Check the “best if used by” date and keep an eye out for spoiled food indicators like changes in color, texture, and smell.

How Long Does Chicken Last For In The Refrigerator?

In your refrigerator, raw chicken can be kept for about a day and a half, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The same holds true for poultry, including raw turkey.

Meanwhile, cooked chicken can be stored in the fridge for about three to four days.

Since bacteria generally grow more slowly below 40°F (4°C), storing chicken in the refrigerator helps slow down bacterial growth.

Additionally, it is best to store raw chicken in a leak-proof container to stop its juices from leaking and contaminating other foods. Four Trusted Sources recommend storing cooked chicken in the refrigerator in airtight containers.

It’s best to store chicken in your freezer if you need to keep it for more than a few days.

When frozen, raw chicken can be kept in pieces for up to 9 months and as a whole for up to 1 year. In the freezer, cooked chicken can be kept for two to six months.

How To Tell If Chicken Has Gone Bad

Even if the “best, if used by” date on the chicken package you bought, hasn’t yet passed (more on these dates later), it’s still possible that the meat has spoiled. How can you determine if something has spoiled and is no longer safe to eat?

Trust your senses first. A bad odor emanates from spoiled chicken. View the meat, please. It also seems extra shiny and slimy when raw chicken meat has gone bad.

Additionally, color matters. Frequently, the spoiled chicken loses its pinkish hue and appears gray, sometimes even green and yellow. You might occasionally see mold growing on human flesh.

Check out the texture of the meat. When you press on bad chicken, it may feel stiff, especially when the meat does not spring back to its original shape and leaves an indentation. A small amount of spoiled meat might also feel slimy and soft. And always wash your hands for at least 20 seconds in warm, soapy water after handling raw chicken.

How Long Does Raw Chicken Stay Fresh At Room Temperature?

Chicken should be thrown away if left at room temperature for longer than two hours because bacteria grow quickly between 40°F and 140°F.
When freezing raw chicken, make sure to do so before the number of days indicated for refrigerator storage has passed in order to further extend the shelf life of the food.
By covering the original store packaging with airtight heavy-duty aluminum foil, plastic wrap, and freezer paper, or placing the package inside a heavy-duty freezer bag, you can extend the shelf life of a chicken in the freezer and avoid freezer burn.

How To Freeze Chicken For Later Use

If you have cooked or raw chicken that you won’t be preparing or eating for a while, you should store it in the freezer rather than the refrigerator. Here’s a quick guide on how to freeze chicken for later use.

Make sure to individually wrap each piece of chicken, whether it is cooked or raw. After that, place the chicken in an airtight bag, squeezing out any extra air before sealing it. The deepest section of the freezer should be used to store your chicken. When handling chicken, especially if it’s raw, make sure to wash your hands both before and after.

How long does chicken keep in the freezer after being stored? When frozen, whole chickens can last up to a year and individual pieces of raw chicken are good for 9 months.

How To Choose And Store Chicken So It Stays Fresh

Your trip to the grocery store is where you should start choosing the freshest chicken. Look for chicken that is raw and has flesh that is a pale pink color. To prevent the juices from contaminating your other groceries, place the raw chicken package in a disposable bag.

Keep raw chicken at home in its original packaging; only open it when you’re ready to use it. In addition, remember that fresh chicken meat has no odor when you do open it. Aside from being smooth and moist to the touch, the meat should also feel firm with a little give.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 1 in every 25 packages of chicken may be contaminated by Salmonella bacteria. The key to limiting the spread of the bacteria is to follow proper storage procedures.

At a temperature below 40°F (4°C), keep the raw chicken in the refrigerator. Place the bagged package on the bottom shelf to avoid any drippings that may leak from the packaging and contaminate other foods.

Conclusion

In the refrigerator, raw chicken should not be kept for more than one to two days. This timeline begins to apply if the chicken was previously frozen once the meat is completely defrosted.

Cooked chicken will typically keep in the freezer for two to six months. Reduce food waste by freezing cooked chicken. In order to keep yourself from forgetting to use the chicken while it’s still fresh, it’s a good idea to mark the bag with the date the chicken was cooked and frozen.