Leftover Storage Tips

The Mr. Food Test Kitchen shares their own food safety and refrigerator leftover storage tips! This easy-to-read chart ensures your own holiday leftovers will be wrapped and put away to be safely enjoyed a second time.

What to Do

No food should be allowed to sit out at room temperature for more than two hours (see Note).
Place food into shallow containers, divvying leftovers into smaller or personal-sized portions, and immediately put in the refrigerator or freezer for rapid cooling.
Foods must be kept covered in a refrigerator at the proper safe temperature zone of 38 to 40 degrees F.

PRODUCT	REFRIGERATOR STORAGE TIMES
Ham, fully cooked	3 to 4 days
Turkey, fully cooked	2 days
Cooked meat & meat casseroles	3 to 4 days
Gravy & meat broth	1 to 2 days
Cooked poultry casseroles	3 to 4 days
Poultry pieces, plain	3 to 4 days
Poultry pieces in broth or gravy	1 to 2 days
Pizza, cooked	3 to 4 days
Stuffing, cooked, outside a bird	1 to 2 days
Cold-cut trays	3 days
Mashed potatoes	1 to 2 days
Cranberry sauce	7 days
Sweet potatoes, cooked	7 days
Pumpkin Pie	2 to 3 days
Eggnog	4 to 5 days after “Sell by” date

Note

This guide refers to a total of two hours during a food’s lifetime, and doesn’t mean two hours every time you take it out of the refrigerator. And, of course, if you have any doubt about whether or not a food is still fresh and safe to eat: Be safe and throw it out.

For a great way to use leftovers, try our Ham Frittata. It's so yummy, nobody'll know it was made with leftovers!