Health and Safety in Your Kitchen

By Sylvie Ryan

Boise Co-op Culinary Educator

Proper hygiene and food handling, as well as cold storage and heating temperatures, are all important considerations when you're preparing food. We think of these practices as an essential in restaurant kitchens, but it is equally important to make some easy but vital efforts in your own kitchen, too. Here are a few reminders as the Holiday season approaches:

It Starts With Basic Kitchen Hygiene

I especially think of basic things such as washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water whenever preparing food. You also want to make sure to use different cutting boards and utensils for cooked and raw foods to prevent cross-contamination of bacteria, particularly when you are preparing poultry, meat or fish. Wash cutting boards and utensils well in hot, soapy water before and after each use. Changing and washing all dish cloth and towels regularly also helps in maintaining proper hygiene.

Some "Safe Food Preparation" Basics

You should completely thaw any frozen food, especially meat and poultry, before cooking. The best place to defrost food is in the refrigerator.

It is helpful to have multiple cutting boards that serve different purposes. In my kitchen, I actually labeled each board with a sharpy, so as not to confuse them.

Discard any thawed juices from meat and poultry, do not use them in your dishes. It is also important to never reuse a marinade.

Do not leave any cooked food, even pasta, rice or potatoes, uncovered at room temperature of any length of time; harmful bacteria can quickly multiply, even on cooked food, so cover it as soon as possible and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Cooking

Cook all raw beef, pork, lamb and veal steaks, chops, and roasts to a minimum internal temperature of 145 °F as measured with a food thermometer before removing the meat from the heat source. For safety and quality, allow meat to rest for at least three minutes before carving or consuming. For reasons of personal preference, consumers may choose to cook meat to higher temperatures.

Also, cook all raw ground beef, pork, lamb, and veal to an internal temperature of 160 °F as measured with a food thermometer. Make sure you cook all poultry to an internal temperature of 165 °F as measured with a food thermometer.

Hot food should be held at 140 °F or warmer.

Cold food should be held at 40 °F or colder.

For Those Holiday Dinner Leftovers

Put leftover food into shallow containers and immediately place in the refrigerator or freezer for rapid cooling. Use cooked leftovers within 4 days. Reheat leftovers to 165 °F. Discard any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.

Proper Storage

Always refrigerate perishable food within 2 hours (1 hour when the temperature is above 90 °F).

Check the temperature of your refrigerator and freezer with an appliance thermometer. The refrigerator should be at 40 °F or below, and the freezer at 0 °F or below.

Cook or freeze fresh poultry, fish, ground meats, and variety meats within 2 days of purchase; other beef, veal, lamb, or pork, within 3 to 5 days.

Safe and happy holidays!