# Do you eat from food storage containers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 28, 2013, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441 "2013-08-28T21:29:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/21 "2013-08-29T13:21:34Z")
all the time ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/22 "2013-08-29T13:32:44Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Since ice cream only comes in single serving containers…of course I do. Why on earth are you microwaving your ice cream? 😛 I lay no claim to being civilized, so eating from containers is de rigueur. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/23 "2013-08-29T15:25:41Z")
I hardly ever “grab something from the fridge.” I live alone and I don’t cook, so it’s very rare for me to have leftovers (when your meals are pre-packaged, it’s easy to make just as much as you feel like eating). I imagine that I would have no trouble eating right from the container, though. As a slight hijack, I usually transfer my food from whatever it was baked/microwaved in to a plate or bowl before I eat it. The exception is Stouffer’s frozen food, which I usually eat from the plastic contraption it got nuked in – but I do stick that on a plate, so I can carry/hold it without burning myself. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/24 "2013-08-29T15:43:22Z")
It depends. If it’s just me for some reason, and there’s about one serving of a single-pot meal like stew, lasagna, etc… left in the Tupperware container, I’ll heat and eat from the container without blinking. If there are side dishes or some sort of accoutrements involved like something served over rice or noodles, I’ll usually plate it up. However, if we’re sitting down to dinner, and there are 2 servings, we’ll plate them both up even if it’s a single-pot meal. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/25 "2013-08-29T15:48:42Z")
Even if I am not reheating food I often eat it from the utensil in which I cooked it. Mind you, when I am cooking for guests, I can plate up food beautifully and have an array of plates for the purpose, but why bother for myself? ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/26 "2013-08-29T16:00:37Z")
If I’m going to eat sitting at a table I’ll heat and eat from the same container. If I’m going to eat my food slouched in my living room chair I’ll get it good and hot and then pour it into something I can comfortably hold. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/27 "2013-08-29T16:24:39Z")
If I put the storage container in the microwave, it’s because there’s only a little food left and I intend to eat all of it myself. It’s wasteful to reheat more of it than I intend to consume; likewise, it’s wasteful to use another dish. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/28 "2013-08-29T16:51:57Z")
The thought of transferring the food to a plate never even occurred to me. What’s the point? ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/29 "2013-08-29T17:35:03Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > The thought of transferring the food to a plate never even occurred to me. What’s the point? Like I said- sometimes the container gets really hot, or it’s pretty full and I don’t want hot soup or something sloshing around, or I’m building a plate with other items on the side. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/30 "2013-08-29T17:40:13Z")
😉 > [@Leaffan](#): > > The thought of transferring the food to a plate never even occurred to me. What’s the point? We go to the extreme of using good china and crystal stemware for leftovers and box wine. I’m just now seeing we are in the minority, but candlelight dinners do seem to taste better! ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/31 "2013-08-29T17:41:18Z")
I put it in a dish. I’m not a savage like most the the people here. Plus, as the Oatmeal demonstrates [here](http://theoatmeal.com/comics/coffee_in_porcelain), things taste better out of a proper dish. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/32 "2013-08-29T17:43:10Z")
For lunch, I always eat straight out of the container (I bring my lunch 90+% of the time). For dinner, it goes on a plate. Also, “Put it in a bowl, son. You’ll enjoy it more.” ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/33 "2013-08-29T17:46:04Z")
> [@want2befree](#): > > +2 +3 ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/34 "2013-08-29T17:49:52Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Since ice cream only comes in single serving containers…of course I do. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/35 "2013-08-29T18:29:39Z")
What’s so hard to understand? Once the lid comes off a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, it ain’t going back on. That ipso facto makes it a “single serving container.” ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/36 "2013-08-29T18:44:04Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > What’s so hard to understand? Once the lid comes off a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, it ain’t going back on. That ipso facto makes it a “single serving container.” So you never, ever buy ice cream in larger containers? ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/37 "2013-08-29T18:52:54Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > So you never, ever buy ice cream in larger containers? You’re really not getting the joke… ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/38 "2013-08-29T19:01:25Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > You’re really not getting the joke… Rhymers have no sense of humor. Says so in the RhymerFaq. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2013, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/39 "2013-09-02T05:59:54Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > A proper dish is whatever I can eat stuff out of. This. A dish is a utilitarian tool, not an opportunity to define myself. ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2013, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441/40 "2013-09-02T06:52:00Z")
I take leftovers to work most days and eat them out of the dish that I microwave them in. I only use a plate if I’m only taking some of the leftovers. Then I dish up what I want onto a serving plate and re-heat it on that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-eat-from-food-storage-containers/667441.md?page=3)