Eli5: why is it safer to let food cool down before putting it in fridge, instead of putting it in hot?

Question

Eli5: why is it safer to let food cool down before putting it in fridge, instead of putting it in hot?

In: Biology

Answer 1

When the food is hot, the heat has to go somewhere. Over time, as the food cools down that heat leaves the food and goes into the air around it. That’s not a problem for your kitchen counter. But, if you put hot food in the fridge, the heat has to go somewhere and before it leaves the fridge it will heat up all the food around it. If you have something very sensitive in the fridge that might spoil if exposed to even a little heat, that could cause a problem.