September is National Food Safety Month, a time to remind consumers about the most common food safety mistakes made in the kitchen every day.
Here are the top five from the Kentucky Beef Council. Visit www.kycattle.org.
Mistake No. 1: Guessing when your meat is properly cooked.
The most accurate way to ensure that your meat is safely cooked is to use a food-safe meat thermometer. Insert an ovenproof meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat. An instant read one is the easiest. It registers in just a few seconds. For burgers, make sure the temperature rises to 160 degrees, which means medium-doneness. Steaks and seafood need to reach 145 degrees. Chicken should be cooked to 180 degrees; chicken breast, 170 degrees; ground poultry, 165 degrees.
Mistake No 2: Creating a “Danger zone” in your kitchen.
The “Danger zone” is between 40 and 140 degrees. The solution here is to always remember the mantra: Keep hot food hot and cold food cold. It’s important to set your refrigerator at a cold enough temperature (40 degrees or less) to discourage the growth of food borne bacteria.
Mistake No.3: Defrosting at room temperature.
We all freeze our meat to keep it fresh longer; the problem comes in when you defrost it. Remember “The thaw law.” Never defrost your food at room temperature. The best, safest way to defrost is to thaw food in your refrigerator.
Mistake No. 4: Mixing up the marinade.
It’s important to remember the marinating mandate. Once the marinade has been in contact with uncooked meat, poultry or seafood, it must be brought to a rolling boil before it can be used as a sauce. Boiling the marinade will kill any bacteria. If you don’t plan on reusing your marinade, throw it out.
Mistake No. 5: Separation anxiety.
It’s important not to stuff your leftovers into a large container. Leftovers should be stored in shallow containers (two inches or less) for quick cooling and to prevent the build up of bacteria. In a large container, food takes longer to cool, which is long enough for bacteria to grow. Make sure you freeze or refrigerate your perishable leftovers within two hours or less. Never allow leftovers to cool to room temperature before refrigerating them.
Just curious, but what about crockpot cooking? If the food is on “keep warm” then how long can you leave it out safely?
Thanks for the tips.
Yes, the slow cooker cooks foods slowly at a low temperature—generally between 170 and 280 degrees.
The direct heat from the pot, lengthy cooking and steam created within the tightly-covered container combine to destroy bacteria and make the slow cooker a safe process for cooking foods.