A food safety specialist tells us that you should be careful with leftovers from your Thanksgiving feast.

Turkey is the most common main dish for Thanksgiving, and it requires some special attention before it can be “repurposed” for sandwiches, soups and casseroles.

Kansas State University Research and Extension and University of Missouri Extension consumer food safety specialist Londa Nwadike says leftover food should be refrigerated within two hours of being served.

“You just don’t want things to be sitting at room temperature for longer than they need to be,” Nwadike says. “Two hours is kind of a good rule-of-thumb.”

“You don’t want things to be in the temperature danger zone, which is 40 to 140-degrees. Try not to leave it on the counter all afternoon.”

The key to safely storing leftovers is getting food cooled down quickly. Nwadike suggests cutting the turkey into smaller pieces or slices and using shallow containers.

“You don’t want to put a huge turkey back in the fridge because it’s going to take a long time for that to cool down properly,” she says. “Putting them into shallow containers can help the heat to dissipate faster. If you put it into a big deep dish, the heat doesn’t have a chance to rise out as easily.”

Nwadike says refrigerated leftovers should be eaten within three to four days.

“This is in the refrigerator, so by about Sunday, it’s a good time to put it in the freezer. You can still freeze things, you just want to make sure that you’re not leaving it in the refrigerator for more than three to four days. Freezing things is a great way to maintain their safety and their quality.”

Leftover gravy is the exception to the three to four day rule. Nwadike says gravy should be eaten or frozen within one to two days.