Steamed Rice Freshness

My wife insists that it's ok to eat steamed rice that's been left in the steamer and out on the counter for over 24 hours.  To me, common sense tells me it's wrong to eat anything that has been cooked and left out at room temperature or in this case a dark, moist, warm condition for any long period of time.  Please help me prove her wrong.

I have never heard of anyone dieing from rice poisoning. LOL. Personally I have a friend from China, she has the same habit with her rice. IF it has anything that should be refrigerated on it, I would think differently. Even saying that makes me think of people that do not refrigerate butter or eggs. Now that is freaky to me. If you really have problems with it, I can give you a good recipe to make your own rice that you can refrigerate. ( His rice, her rice.) lol.

Pleases know this sounds like I am picking on you to me, but please know, I am just giving you my opinion. I tried to make it light hearted. It is my own uneducated opinion.

Good luck!

If sealed and undisturbed in a lidded pot it should be fine since it takes more than 24 hours for bacterial growth that survived the cooking to multiply to the point its a problem. A tightly lidded pot would be like if it was canned. after a while airflow into the pot will have something growing.    So if someone after it has cooked and cooled down disturbed the rice in the pot, I'd rather the rice be refrigerated unless your kitchen is cold.    Remember to Identify most pathogens petri dishes have to be cultured for 3 days.   It sould be ok to eat if the kitchen is cool and clean utensils were used to dish out the rice while the rice is very hot and the rice quickly covered after being dished out. I'd reheat the rice well on a just in case basis 24hours later.   Still some peoples stomach are more sensitive than others, and pacebo's show there is nothing quite like the power of suggestion for some people. Just tell her it disturbs you, and life is worring enough, so please do you that small favour and put the rice in the fridge.  If she finds placing it in the fridge such a chore, I suspect you may over time time find worse incompatibilites with your wife. If she complies with your wishes, (even if with poor grace), know you are loved.

With rice it has to either be kept warm or cold, as it sours very fast.

If your rice cooker is left plugged in on the "warm" setting it can be left there well over 24hours. But don't worry if your rice begins to sour, you will know it.

This happens more easily with minute rice, and it smells worst than sour milk.

I asked my Asian fiance and he says that as long as it is covered and the cooker is turned off, it's fine.

I wouldn't recommend it.  There's a particular bacteria called Bacillus Cereus that is found in starchy foods such as rice and potatoes.  It's heat stable (heat resistant) and can make you sick within 1-6 hours. 

In fact, there's even a syndrome named after this particular foodborne illness, it's called Fried Rice Syndrome.  I kid you not.  There was an outbreak at a daycare center that served improperly reheated fried rice and a large number of children got very sick.  Although a misnomer, improperly stored cooked rice is definitely a real health concern.

I am by no means agreeing or disagreeing. However, I find this thread interesting because that's EXACTLY what my Chinese mom tells me - that rice left in the cooker for a day is fine.

We eat like that EVERY single day - literally. We have rice for dinner, save the leftovers in a closed rice cooker, then scoop it out the next day and reheat it before eating it for lunch.

All five people in my family have been doing this for years. I think you're right to stay on the safe side, but keep in mind that probably 95%+ of Chinese people do it your wife's way. It's completely between you and your wife's preferences.