How To Use A Thermos

Thermoses allow us to switch things upward and bask a prissy hot lunch, whether it's your favorite leftovers or bootleg soup or even go along items like smoothies or yogurt parfaits chilled!

The questions "how long is it safe to keep my food hot in a thermos?" and "how long volition food last in a thermos?", or "what thermos containers are best?" are notable concerns for many parents packing school lunches.

Properly packing hot and cold nutrient into a thermos container is essential in ensuring that your food will be rubber to consume by the time lunch rolls around so let's become over both methods. Since packing cold foods is super elementary, nosotros'll start in that location.

When it comes to packing milk, smoothies, or a yogurt parfait every bit long as the food does not sit down at a temperature above 40F yous are good to become. Before packing cold food, you lot practise demand to chill the thermos, which can is done past placing the thermos container in the freezer overnight, once your food is packed and sealed place it in the lunch bag along with a freezer pack. Ta-da!

Now onto the hot meals! Ever heated your food in the morning, packed information technology in a thermos and by lunch information technology's was cold? Yup, me besides but before you lot throw abroad that thermos container picket the video below to see if you are correctly packing hot lunches.

As you lot saw in the video, before packing hot food into a thermos, it needs to exist HOT! Think that hot tiffin nosotros talked well-nigh earlier? Yep that one, well information technology'southward likely that your nutrient wasn't properly heated before being packed into the thermos. The good news is that there is nothing incorrect with your thermos, hoorah!

How long can food last in a thermos and withal exist safe to swallow?

Given that you cooked the food to a safe temperature and then warmed it up to a piping hot temperature, the food inside the thermos container is not probable to go bad.

Simply considering I honey you guys, I've researched proper food preparation and storage so that you lot can safely pack hot lunches for your family! Here'due south what I've learned:

Bacteria grows quicker between 40F and 140F, so perishable foods should Not stay at that temperature range longer than 3 hours (therefore, hot foods should be heated to 212F a.chiliad.a "too hot to handle" before packing in a thermos).
Thermoses must be preheated earlier filling. This footstep often skipped, but it'southward easy to exercise and worth it on cold winter ways when you lot want to pack leftover bootleg Mac and Cheese or Chicken Alfredo.

How to Warm a Thermos

If your food isn't keeping warm as long equally you lot idea, you lot need to pre-estrus your thermos container. Here's how:

1. Boil h2o
2. Make full thermos container with boiled h2o, cover.
iii. Wait five minutes and warm food in the microwave while waiting.
4. Empty the thermos
5. Place piping hot food into thermos, close.
half dozen. Pack and enjoy!

Nutrient packed inside any lunch container should exist thoroughly cooked through, and so no raw eggs, onions or undercooked meats or raw fish.

How to Proceed Food Cold in a Thermos

Now that we know what to do with our thermos soups, pastas and leftovers, the question remains – how can you continue food cold in a thermos? If you are packing smoothies or yogurt, you'll desire to make sure those things stay chilled to temperature likewise. Hither's how to brand sure your cold nutrient stays cold in a thermos luncheon.

1. Place thermos in the refrigerator with some ice water within it to arctic

two. Afterward thermos has chilled, put your smoothie, drinkable or other common cold food items into the thermos and pack it in the lunchbox

3. Place the thermos near an water ice pack in the lunchbox to brand sure it stays dainty and fresh until lunchtime.

How to Pack Hot and Common cold Items in the Same Lunchbox

I question I become asked all the fourth dimension, is if hot and cold items can be packed in the same lunchbox. The reply is, absolutely they tin! This is 1 reason I love using big, square lunchboxes, information technology helps make sure I can become everything my kids need for tiffin, in one simple carrying case.

Sentinel how piece of cake it is to pack hot and common cold luncheon items together in the same box:

Now for the thermos testing.

Below are my four thermos container recommendations. Each container was tested three times with the same method: Heating soup to 210F, packing it into the thermos and waiting 5 hours before checking the soup'southward temperature. The results:

Thermos Funtainer 10 ounce

Great for kids, like shooting fish in a barrel to open and fits a good portion of food – 1 ½ cups! The temperature of the soup was 210F when placed into the thermos, and later on v hours, information technology was 138F –perfectly warm and good enough to eat.
Purchase the Thermos Funtainer here.

Thermos FOOGO Stainless Steel 10-ounce

Like to the Funtainer (with the exception of a rubberized grip) and neat for kids. Totally worth purchasing! The temperature of the soup was 210F when placed into the thermos, and after 5 hours, information technology was 134F.
Buy the Thermos Foogo here.

Lunchbots sixteen-ounce

I love and own this one merely for the size. It has a broad opening which makes it more like a bowl and easier to eat out of. All the same, it can be a footling more hard for younger kids to open because of the broad lid. It also holds a lot of food, 2 cups!
The temperature of the soup was 210F when placed into the thermos, and later on five hours, information technology was 130F.
Buy the Lunchbots Nutrient Jar here.

Stanley 17-ounce

This one WORKS! The temperature of the soup was 210F when placed into the thermos, and after 5 hours, it was 165F!
Information technology was most too hot to consume, just after a few minutes of being open up, the soup was perfect! It's also great for both kids and adults, easy to open and since it's 17 ounces that means more room for food, nearly two cups.
Buy the Stanley Insulated Jar here.

You can't go wrong with any of the options higher up for packing lunches. A thermos is a terrific vessel for repurposing leftovers and sending hot and cold foods for dejeuner!

If you need ideas to fill up the thermos containers, bank check out our meal plans. Our real food dinners tin yield leftovers, and our lunches will add variety to whatever lunchbox, guaranteed.

Plus, you go a shopping list, a meal-prep sheet with a breakdown of what to prep when… information technology's practically a kitchen assistant at pennies per day. Want to try it out starting time before you commit? Go a free calendar week of our meal plans here!

1 matter to consider prior to sending nutrient in a thermos for the first time is to allow your child try information technology at home outset, so they are comfy opening and endmost the container ain their ain. A dandy identify to start is with these delicious thermos soup recipes.

What are some of your favorite things to pack inside a thermos?