Cooking in the kitchen is a worthwhile experience. You get to mix, blend, sieve, chop, or grind ingredients. The final product should be satisfactory. However, one should ensure that there is total safety in the kitchen as accidents can be costly. The area contains many substances such as open fire, knives, bacteria, and electrical appliances that can be hazardous.
Kitchen safety is a critical element that you must observe, especially if you want to be a great cook. Paying attention in this area is the first step to preventing accidents or injuries. Additionally, you should know when to do the cleaning and inform everyone when it happens. The following are some additional tips to adhere to food safety in the kitchen:
Avoid leaving temperature-sensitive foods out on the counter
- Raw fish, meat, and some dairy products tend to spoil after a short time. Therefore, you should freeze or refrigerate them immediately after purchase
- When you buy these kinds of foods, look for the label “safe food handling.” It will instruct you to store or handle raw poultry and meat at home
- To avoid food poisoning, ensure that you cook refrigerated ground meat two days after purchase. Additionally, cook whole cuts of meat, such as ribs and pork chops, not more than after three days of purchase
- Young children, the elderly, and pregnant women get food poisoning at higher rates.
- Eat or freeze cooked meat within three days
- Always defrost frozen meat either in the microwave or under running water. Avoid placing it on the kitchen counter to defrost
- If you are using a chopping board, ensure that you use two. One should be for the ready-to-eat foods and the other for raw seafood, poultry, and meat. After use, wash it thoroughly, dry it and place it on the transitional kitchen cabinet for future use
Learn to keep raw meat and poultry separately from the other food items
- To avoid cross-contamination of bacteria, you should separate these food items. Therefore, keep raw meat separately in the fridge’s lower compartment
- Thoroughly wash your hands
- You may desire to use hand sanitizers instead of washing your hands which is a shortcut. Remember your hands can carry bacteria from the kitchen surfaces to your food. Consequently, learn to thoroughly wash your hands with soap over running water before you start handling raw foods
- Dry your hands using paper towels and not dishcloths as they tend to carry bacteria around
- Wipe the kitchen surface like the sink and kitchen tops where the raw food was to avoid spreading the bacteria
Use a food thermometer
To ensure that the food cooks well, use a food thermometer. Use 160°F for ground meats and 145°F for whole cuts of meat like roasts, chops, and steak.
Cooking temperature
- Cook all the foods at a temperature of 75 °C as this heat kills bacteria. Always have a thermometer to check the warmth of the food during the cooking process
- When cooking sausages, whole chicken, and stuffed meat, make sure that you do not see any pink meat
- When it comes to fish, ensure you cook it well until it flakes with a fork
How to handle high-risk food
Below are some of the high-risk foods to look out for:
- Curries, lasagna, and casseroles
- Dairy products like custard and dairy-based desserts like cheesecake and custard tarts
- Hams and salamis
- Seafood salad like fish balls, patties, and fish stock
- Rice salads like pasta salads, coleslaws, and rice salads
- Ready-to-eat foods like sandwiches, pizza, and rolls
Store the foods mentioned above in the danger temperatures zone, which is between 5 °C and 60 °C. However, if these foods stay in ordinary heat conditions for two hours or more, make sure they are refrigerated, reheated, or consumed.
Additionally, when preparing foods with raw eggs like tiramisu, mayonnaise, and eggnog, ensure that you handle the eggshells well. It is because they contain bacteria that can contaminate the meal and lead to food poisoning.
Microwave cooking
People prefer to use the microwave as it is a quick and convenient way to cook. However, pay attention when using it as you can end up preparing the food unevenly. When using the microwave:
- Certify that you cut your food evenly
- Always cover your food with a microwave lid to trap the moisture. Because it aids in cooking it evenly
- Stir the food and rotate it during cooking
Every food handler should understand that proper hygiene can help to protect consumers from foodborne diseases. If you follow the tips above, you will be better equipped to handle food and avoid contamination.
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Author: Jaylin, a guest post service planner of Leelija and full-time blogger. Favorite things: camera, traveling, caring for fitness, food and fashion. Email id: editor@leelija.com