We are rapidly approaching the major "cooking holidays" of
the year. We all want our family and dinner guests to have
a pleasant dining experience. We spend days planning that
special meal and hours preparing it so nothing goes off
without a hitch, but did we do it safely? You might have
pulled off the best beef wellingtons ever - you boss'
favorite—but if you poisoned everyone in the room,
you can kiss that promotion good bye. So let's look at some
basic tips for keeping your food safe and you employed.
Keep It Clean
Wash your hands often. This sounds easy, and most people
wash their hands before they start cooking, but you should
after handling nearly every ingredient you
touch—especially meat.
Wash all surfaces with warm, soapy water before beginning
to prepare your food, but also often during preparation and
after. For added preventative measure mix 1 tbsp. of
chlorine bleach per 1 gallon of water. Use this on surfaces
only and keep clear of foods.
Vegetables and fruits should be washed under running water.
After washing they should be set to the side until ready to
be used. Keep them separate from meats.
It is a common myth that washing meat before cooking it can
prevent bacteria from spreading throughout your kitchen and
improves food safety; this is false. What happens instead
is contaminates are spread further onto utensils, sinks and
preparation surfaces. Meat should go directly from the
packaging to the prep surface and then the cooking
apparatus (I.E. pan, pot, crock, etc.). Any bacteria that
might be present in the meat will be killed by cooking it.
That's why meat is supposed to be cooked to certain
temperatures.
Cooking
Every kitchen should own a meat thermometer and every cook
should know how to use one. This will ensure that all meat
is cooked to a temperature that is suitably safe to be
consumed. The following are meat types and minimum safe
temperatures according to the FDA:
Beef, Veal and Lamb - 145 degrees F
Pork - 145 degrees F
Poultry - 145 degrees F
Chill
Harmful bacteria that can cause food poisoning grows at an
accelerated rate at room temperature. For this reason it is
important to bring the temperature of your leftovers down
as quickly as possible. Food should be chilled and stored
within 2 hours of serving or preparation.
Covering leftovers is not always enough. Make sure you have
eliminated as much contact with air as possible. With soups
and sauces it is recommended that you place a large piece
of plastic wrap over the top and press it down until the
liquid touches the wrap, forming a seal. Not only will this
prevent harmful air from reaching the sauce but has the
added benefit of eliminating "skin" that forms on the
surface of sauces, soups and gravies.
Meat should be tightly wrapped and placed in the
refrigerator as soon as possible.
Keep your refrigerator at a minimum of 40 °F and check
this every so often against a refrigerator thermometer.
Also, try not to pack too much food into your refrigerator
as this prohibits air from circulating and keeping
everything nice and cool.
If you follow these steps you can greatly reduce the
chances of food-borne pathogens ruining your holiday
season. Have a happy holiday season!
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