The general rule is to reheat leftovers only once. The reason is not that the food loses flavor each time it is reheated, but that every heating and cooling cycle sends it through the 5-60°C / 40-140°F range one more time, where bacteria multiply quickly. So reheat only the amount you plan to eat for that meal, and keep the rest refrigerated without heating it. The reheating count stays the same. The one-container, one-meal rule makes the whole process easier to track.
Cooking kills most bacteria in food, but heat-resistant spores from some bacteria may survive. As food cools, these spores can become active and multiply quickly between 5°C / 40°F and 60°C / 140°F. Reheating kills many of the bacteria that have multiplied, but it may not destroy heat-resistant substances some of them produce, even if the food is boiled. In other words, the risk builds with each cycle. The limit is based on this accumulation rather than an arbitrary rule; the fewer reheating cycles, the safer the food remains.
The practical solution is to keep the count from advancing. After cooking and cooling the food, divide it into portions for one meal and store them in separate containers. At mealtime, heat only that container; the rest of the pot has not been reheated, so its own storage time continues. If a large pot of food is reheated and cooled from scratch every day, it will have gone through three cycles by the end of three days. Dividing the food also speeds up cooling: food cools much faster in shallow, wide containers than in a deep pot. Writing the cooking date on the containers helps show when the three- to four-day period began.
When reheating, the goal is for every part of the food to be thoroughly hot; a plate that is lukewarm in the middle has not been heated enough. On the stove, stir the food and heat it until it bubbles. If you check with a thermometer, the center should reach at least 74°C / 165°F. Since microwaves heat unevenly, stir the food once halfway through heating and let it stand for a few minutes afterward. Adding 1–2 spoonfuls of water when reheating rice, pasta, or stews helps keep them from drying out. Cover food reheated in the oven with foil; otherwise, the exposed surface can dry out and the edges can harden. When reheating sauces and soups, scrape the bottom of the pot as well, since heat reaches it first and the food there can burn.
Storage time is another part of the calculation. In general, eat cooked food stored in the refrigerator within three or four days, regardless of how many times it has been reheated. Cool the food and refrigerate it within two hours after cooking. Do not refreeze food after thawing and reheating it. If it develops a sour smell, bubbles, a slimy surface, or an unexpected color change, do not try to save it by reheating it for a long time; throw it away.
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