How long does chicken last

Keep raw chicken on the bottom shelf, in a sealed box or the shop tray, at 4°C (40°F), so the juice cannot drip. USDA FSIS says to cook or freeze fresh poultry within 2 days. The Bayburt ministry note says two things at once: a fresh bird is best cooked the day you buy it or the next, and the same note also publishes 3 days as a ceiling when the fridge is right. The bold number stays 1–2 days. A use-by date that arrives sooner replaces the chart. The split between a safety date and a quality date is on the use-by and best-before guide.

Ground chicken is not a piece. The chart gives it 1–2 days in the fridge and 3–4 months in the freezer. Cooked chicken, including a plain roast, follows leftovers: cool it in a shallow box and refrigerate it inside the two-hour rule. The UK FSA says eat leftovers within 2 days. USDA lists 3–4 days for plain or fried pieces and for poultry casseroles.

Get perishable food into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking it or bringing it home, and within 1 hour if the kitchen is above 32°C (90°F). USDA FSIS and Turkey’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry both publish that cutoff. A closed deep pot stays warm; a shallow box cools.

A chart is a window, not a verdict on the container in your hand. A sour smell, a slimy surface, or mould means it is finished, even on day one. This page is not medical advice.

• A sour, sweet, or sulfur smell from the pack.
• Flesh that is sticky or slimy. Do not rinse raw chicken to check.
• A grey-green that is not just the usual surface of a cold bird.
• Cooked chicken that smells sharp, or a sauce that has bubbled or moulded in the box.

A little pink by the bone, after the centre has reached 74°C (165°F), can be a pigment rather than a raw centre. Use a thermometer. Colour does not replace the chart.

Freeze raw chicken the day you buy it if you will not cook it inside 1–2 days. USDA lists about 12 months for a whole bird and 9 months for pieces. The ministry’s freezer list groups raw poultry at 9–12 months. Cooked pieces are 4 months on the FSIS chart, and the ministry lists the same window for cooked poultry. FoodSafety.gov gives cooked meat and poultry leftovers a wider quality band of 2–6 months. Four months sits inside that band.

Do not thaw on the counter. USDA allows raw meat thawed in the fridge to be frozen again before cooking. The ministry says not to refreeze once it has thawed. This page keeps the stricter line: thaw in the fridge, and do not refreeze.

Thaw in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Do not refreeze a portion that has thawed. The ministry states the same rule: thaw frozen food in the fridge and take out only what you will eat.

• The smell test is enough. Not every pathogen has a smell. The chart and the date on the pack still apply.
• Rinsing raw chicken cleans it. It spreads droplets. USDA says not to wash raw poultry.
• A shop rotisserie chicken lasts a week. FoodKeeper lists rotisserie or fried chicken at 3–4 days in the fridge. The leftover line on this page is 2 days.

The windows assume a generally healthy household. Pregnancy, young children, older age, or a weakened immune system are reasons to keep the shorter figure, to skip raw or undercooked food, and to reheat leftovers until the centre is steaming. USDA’s figure for reheating leftovers is 74°C (165°F).

Cook poultry to 74°C (165°F), including ground chicken and stuffing. In pregnancy, for young children, in older age, or with a weakened immune system, do not taste raw marinade, do not eat undercooked chicken, and reheat leftovers to 74°C (165°F). The splash is on the board: wash the board with hot soapy water, not the chicken.