Handling Leftovers in Camp or Spaghetti that's Better Leftover

There's nothing better that leftover spaghetti, especially when camping. I don't know exactly what happens, but the pasta and tomato sauce seems to age with time. It's one of those meals that tastes better the second time around.

Spaghetti also makes a great meal for the first night in camp. It heats up quickly with little fuss. Just fire up the stove, preheat a cast iron skillet and reheat the spaghetti. Toast some garlic bread and toss a salad and dinner's ready. (The recipe for Spaghetti that's Better Leftover follows at the end of the article.)

But before you toss the pasta and sauce in the skillet, you need to understand a few rules about handling leftovers in camp. A few minutes after each meal is all you need to take care of leftover food.

Handling leftovers in camp

Leftover food must be cooled quickly. Professional chefs understand that food must be cooled through the "danger zone" in four hours or less. The danger zone is the temperature range from 41 to 140 degrees. This is the zone in which bacteria and other harmful microorganisms grow rapidly. To prevent rapid bacterial growth, chefs divide leftovers into small portions and place the containers of food over ice. This quickly dissipates the heat in the dish.

It's always best to avoid leftovers in camp. The camp cook often finds it difficult to make sure that leftovers are adequately cooled, especially in hot weather. That's the down side of saving leftovers. But, despite the best efforts of the camp cook, wayward appetites can easily foil the best-laid plans.

Saving leftovers

Few camp cooks like to throw food away. That's guidance I even find hard to follow in camp. So when you're faced with leftovers, use these techniques to save them:

Put leftover food away within two hours of being served. The longer food remains within the danger zone, the greater chance you have of contaminating it with harmful bacteria.

Place leftovers in plastic containers or zipper-lock bag. I like the new Ziploc Brand 20- and 32-ounce containers. They're easy to handle and are the right size holding leftovers in camp.

Set the container of food directly on the block of ice to cool. This is especially important in hot weather since your ice chest may be higher than the 41-degree maximum temperature. Once the dish is cooled, you can move it to a more convenient area of the ice chest.

Use leftovers within three days. Bacteria growth doesn't stop in the ice chest. It just slows considerably. It's much safer to eat the leftovers within three days. If you can't, dispose of them.

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