Does baking kill the mold on sweet potatoes?

[stratoo]

The sweet potatoes I buy often have mold growing on them. I usually just cut out the visible parts but leave the skin on, and bake it for 1.5 hours at 350 f.

Is this safe to do? Does the mold die at high temperatures?

[bubblegumkitty]

lol I'm sorry but why are you buying moldy sweet potatoes?

[necrologic]

I am not a big fan of them but yes why are you buying them moldy?

[stratoo]

It sounded like I'm buying mody sweet potatoes. I ain't. But I often notice that there are some moldy ones in the same patch. So the others might also be moldy? I don't bring a magnifying glass to the store. Also, I buy in bulk so they get moldy at my place too.

[necrologic]

Ok that explain then you didn't say you bought them in bulk.

[stratoo]

Any ideas if eating them can be dangerous? I down about 10 lbs of them in a week. I can imagine if it doesn't get destroyed in the oven there might be some kind of toxins accumulating in my body.

[necrologic]

I personally wouldn't eat anything with mold on it that's just me. I'm not no nutrition major tho

[bogus83]

If you wash them and then bake them you should be fine. Unless the pile you're picking them out of has a bunch of rancid decomposing potatoes in it, it's not the biggest deal.

[fitnessbyjay]

Why do you buy moldy food. Are you dirty bulking?

[MikeK46]

Is this safe to do? Does the mold die at high temperatures?

High heat does kill bacteria (I think salmonella kicks the bucket at less than 150º), but not any toxins that could've formed there. So just cut out the bad parts first and you'll be fine.

[braggable]

I personally wouldn't eat anything with mold on it that's just me. I'm not no nutrition major tho

You know, back in 1928 a guy named Alexander Fleming discovered mold that was growing on his bread would actually kill bacteria. He named that mold Penicillin.

Im just sayin'.

[Jenc1125]

High heat does kill bacteria (I think salmonella kicks the bucket at less than 150º), but not any toxins that could've formed there. So just cut out the bad parts first and you'll be fine.

First, mold and bacteria are completely different.
And when you see mold on the surface of something, what you do not see are it's roots that often go very deeply into the cheese, fruit, vegetable, bread etc.
So cutting off what you see will not guarantee that you've eliminated the mold entirely.
It is best to throw out any item that has gotten moldy.

[pretend]

I ate one today! The store by my place must get the unsold produce from Safeway, since it rarely looks fresh. The mold sometimes appears while in my fridge...

I just wash it thoroughly, wrap it in tin foil, and bake it in the skin (which is obviously later discarded). I haven't died yet, but if you're concerned, do some proper research into it.

Oh, and you can get them cooked in about half that time if you up the temp to ~450F

[MikeK46]

First, mold and bacteria are completely different.
And when you see mold on the surface of something, what you do not see are it's roots that often go very deeply into the cheese, fruit, vegetable, bread etc.
So cutting off what you see will not guarantee that you've eliminated the mold entirely.
It is best to throw out any item that has gotten moldy.

Fine. I'm not well versed in mold, but I wouldn't be afraid to eat it if the mold is cut off. That's what the hydrochloric acid in our stomach is for.

[Jenc1125]

Fine. I'm not well versed in mold, but I wouldn't be afraid to eat it if the mold is cut off. That's what the hydrochloric acid in our stomach is for.

Well molds tend to be more of a danger
As far as allergic reactions, but some do have mycotoxins that can cause illness.
And trust me, the HCL in our stomachs doesn't do s**t as far as that's concerned. If it did, no one would succumb to salmonella, listeria, etc.
; )

That said, I think we've become a society of germophobes and by attempting to sterilize every environment we occupy, we've opened ourselves up to weak immune systems
And increased allergies.

[SolidSteel86]

Buy new sweet potatoes. They're not expensive.

[Churnbuckle]

When it comes to potatoes, don't worry too much about mold. If there's a bit of mold on the skin, then just cut that off and you're good to go. You only need to throw the potato out if the inside feels squishy when you hold it.

[docchio]

I lol'd hard at the OPs question. Brb harvesting moss for dinner tonight to have with my moldy potato

[BookMonkey]

First, mold and bacteria are completely different.
And when you see mold on the surface of something, what you do not see are it's roots that often go very deeply into the cheese, fruit, vegetable, bread etc.
So cutting off what you see will not guarantee that you've eliminated the mold entirely.
It is best to throw out any item that has gotten moldy.

This. When you see the visible mycelium of the mold, then those are just branched offshoots (hyphae) that are the growing parts of the original starting spore. At this point that you see mold, it is already infested. It is doubtful that you can really cut it all out and washing it alone is not enough. Heat can kill bacteria, but does not work on all forms of mold or fungus.

Your best bet is to toss it, as this person said.

[bubblegumkitty]

I lol'd at this entire thread....sorry...

I noticed that nobody mentioned blue cheese... thats mold my friends and we definetely dont cut it off, cook it out, or toss it. I know this has nothing to do with a potato though.

My opinion would be to stop buying in bulk if you're having this problem...you're esentially throwing all the money away that you saved. Also you probably SHOULD go over any type of produce or meat or anything like that you buy! You want to make sure its ripe if you plan on eating it right away, not so ripe if you plan on holding on to it awhile, and when buying in large quantities you want to check to make sure there are no bad ones.

Also the old saying "one bad apple spoils the whole bunch" holds some major truth to it! When and apple (or any fruit/vegetable for that matter) begins to go bad it emits certain chemicals to the surrounding fruit/vegetable causing them to begin the process of going bad as well...even though they may not have even been ripe! Its important to check bags of potatoes, apples, oranges, etc. often and remove any that are showing signs of going bad in order to preserve the rest of the bunch.

[BookMonkey]

I lol'd at this entire thread....sorry...

I noticed that nobody mentioned blue cheese... thats mold my friends and we definetely dont cut it off, cook it out, or toss it. I know this has nothing to do with a potato though.

My opinion would be to stop buying in bulk if you're having this problem...you're esentially throwing all the money away that you saved. Also you probably SHOULD go over any type of produce or meat or anything like that you buy! You want to make sure its ripe if you plan on eating it right away, not so ripe if you plan on holding on to it awhile, and when buying in large quantities you want to check to make sure there are no bad ones.

Also the old saying "one bad apple spoils the whole bunch" holds some major truth to it! When and apple (or any fruit/vegetable for that matter) begins to go bad it emits certain chemicals to the surrounding fruit/vegetable causing them to begin the process of going bad as well...even though they may not have even been ripe! Its important to check bags of potatoes, apples, oranges, etc. often and remove any that are showing signs of going bad in order to preserve the rest of the bunch.

Quite correct. A "bad" apple releases ethylene which causes most plant life to ripen faster. This is good in some cases when you buy unripe fruit, but not so much when you buy already good food.

[justinluck]

The sweet potatoes I buy often have mold growing on them. I usually just cut out the visible parts but leave the skin on, and bake it for 1.5 hours at 350 f.

Is this safe to do? Does the mold die at high temperatures?

If I see mold, I cut out at least a centimeter around it as well. That being said, I'm not sure if it is dangerous or not.

Off topic, do you have your diet and routine posted anywhere on here? Props for an incredible physique (no homo).

[dumbchicken]

keep your potatoes in a dark/dry/cool place, that'll prevent some mold from growing.

[NormanWong]

Cut out the molded part and its fine.
If roots start growing def dont eat it.

And after you bought them dip them all in boiling water for just 1 second dont cook them. That way they last longer.
Hey dont ask me. But it works.