Don't Take Grandma's Word When it Comes to Food Safety
My Grandma Ruth was an amazing cook. Spending time with her in the kitchen growing up is a gift I'll never take for granted. She didn't have a big, fancy kitchen, but she didn't need it to make the very best food I've ever eaten.
The older I get, the more I realize that part of what made her food so good was the love she put into cooking for us. Nothing made her happier than a house overflowing with family and food to feed an army!
Sometimes I laugh out loud when I think of some of the stories she used to tell me while we cooked that I believed to be true, only to find out a few years ago from my dad that those stories probably weren't totally truth.
I also picked up a few habits from her in the kitchen that I've had to relearn when it comes to cooking and food safety. I don't blame my grandma for cooking the way she was taught with the knowledge available at the time. But, I'll never forget my food safety class at Kansas State University during my junior year. Boy, did that open my eyes to a few things!
As knowledge and information have grown when it comes food safety, here are two reminders from experts at Kansas State University as the holidays approach.
1. Don't rinse meat before cooking.
You may have learned from parents or grandparents, or even read in old recipes, to rinse meat before cooking. But Kansas State University food scientist Karen Blakeslee said rinsing meat is an outdated practice that can create food safety problems.
“This can lead to foodborne illness,” Blakeslee said. “Rinsing meat at home can lead to cross contamination of clean surfaces or ready-to-eat foods, as examples.”
Any meat bought from the store is already rinsed during processing, she said, so it can be immediately prepped and cooked without any rinsing step at home.
To be safe at home, other food safety practices are important, Blakeslee pointed out. Before handling any food, and especially after handling raw meats, washing your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds is a vital first step in safe food preparation.
“Be sure equipment and surfaces are clean before and after preparation,” Blakeslee said. “Never reuse any raw meat and poultry packaging materials, such as foam meat trays or plastic wraps.”
2. Don't Judge a Meat's "Doneness" By Its Appearance.
Cooking food to the correct internal temperature is one of the most important factors in ensuring your food is safe, Blakeslee added. Cooking to these temperatures kills any harmful bacteria still left on the food. The minimum recommended temperatures are:
- 145 degrees Fahrenheit for all beef, pork, lamb and veal steaks, roasts and chops
- 145 F for fish and seafood
- 160 F for ground meat
- 165 F for all forms of poultry
Blakeslee said a meat’s “doneness” can never be judged by its color or appearance.
“For example, cooked ground beef may look pink in the middle, but when checked with a thermometer it may be at or above the safe temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit,” she said.
Blakeslee recommends using a food thermometer to check a product’s internal temperature and ensure safe food.
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