Find what you want using the menusThere are two. The one above my head is for the recipe pages. The one below gives you access to a variety of cooking articles, hints and basic cooking skills that I have put together over the years. You will find these menus on every page in this site.Tip Of The WeekHandling Chicken SafelyEvery year in the United States and elsewhere people die from food poisoning caused by poor hygiene when handling meat such as chicken.Many more suffer the symptoms and after effects of eating contaminated food. None of this is necessary.While it's true that chickens are carriers of bacteria such as salmonella, this need not be a problem with proper care. But there are two myths which need to be dispelled right now with regard to the safety of preparing and cooking chicken dishes.* It is not true that freezing kills bacteria. Some do die, but others simply become inactive only to revive when things warm up again.* Meat that has become badly contaminated through poor hygiene does not become 'safe' through prolonged cooking. It may still be toxic.With regard to the first point, you need to be aware that many bacteria produce spores which are impervious to cold. They remain in that state until the conditions are right for them to reproduce. Others simply hibernate until the climate warms up a bit, when they resume normal activities. Which is why defrosted foods should never be refrozen for future use.But there is another important problem which you need to be aware of - toxins. Active bacteria produce chemicals which are poisonous to humans and which may not be destroyed by cooking.It's important for you to grasp this. These toxins, in sufficient quantity, can kill. Chicken, even cooked chicken, which has been standing around in temperatures greater than 6F and less than 135F for a couple of hours or more is no longer fit for human consumption. It should be thrown away.So how do we keep ourselves and our loved ones free from harm? There are some simple rules which everyone who handles chicken should follow:Handling:· Wash your hands thoroughly after handling raw chicken and before handling anything else.· Clean all surfaces used in the preparation thoroughly and disinfect with neat vinegar.· Use a separate cutting board for meat, especially chicken.· Do not re-use a marinade which has been used for raw chickenStoring:· Store in the bottom shelf of the fridge at a temperature of 4F or less· Do not store cooked foods on the same shelf· Store the chicken unwrapped but covered· Do not let the chicken come into direct contact with other foodDe-frosting:· Defrost frozen chicken in the fridge overnight· Once defrosted, do not re-freeze· If you use a microwave to defrost your chicken, cook immediatelyCooking:To be safe, chicken needs to reach and maintain an internal temperature of 180F for at least 10 minutes. Use a meat thermometer to help you determine this, particularly when roasting a whole chicken.Puncturing the thickest part of the thigh to see if the juices run clear is not a reliable test of safety. Bacteria and their toxins are completely invisible to the naked eye.With pieces such as chicken breasts, cut into the centre of the meat and ensure that it is not pink in color. Cooked chicken, whether white or dark meat, is uniformly opaque and has a matt appearance. Chicken meat that is shiny is undercooked.And finally:Please always bear in mind that bacteria such as salmonella and campylobacter are invisible; you can't see them, taste them or smell them. Yet they can double in number every 20 minutes and billions of them can infest a drop of moisture the size of a pinhead.Simple rules of hygiene such as those set out above will help to keep you safe.Just remember that the upset tummy you experienced last summer, or the fluey symptoms that came and went in 24 hours or so, may well have been due to food poisoning caused by bacterial activity.So nothing to worry about really? Well, had you been much younger or much older than you are now, the consequences might have been very different. Why take the chance?
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Tip Of The Week
Handling Chicken Safely
Every year in the United States and
elsewhere people die from food poisoning
caused by poor hygiene when handling meat
such as chicken.
Many more suffer the symptoms and after
effects of eating contaminated food. None of this is
necessary.
While it's true that chickens are carriers of bacteria
such as salmonella, this need not be a problem with
proper care. But there are two myths which need to be
dispelled right now with regard to the safety of
preparing and cooking chicken dishes.
* It is not true that freezing kills bacteria. Some do die,
but others simply become inactive only to revive when
things warm up again.
* Meat that has become badly contaminated through
poor hygiene does not become 'safe' through
prolonged cooking. It may still be toxic.
With regard to the first point, you need to be aware that
many bacteria produce spores which are impervious to
cold. They remain in that state until the conditions are
right for them to reproduce. Others simply hibernate
until the climate warms up a bit, when they resume
normal activities. Which is why defrosted foods should
never be refrozen for future use.
But there is another important problem which you need
to be aware of - toxins. Active bacteria produce
chemicals which are poisonous to humans and which
may not be destroyed by cooking.
It's important for you to grasp this. These toxins, in
sufficient quantity, can kill. Chicken, even cooked
chicken, which has been standing around in
temperatures greater than 6F and less than 135F for a
couple of hours or more is no longer fit for human
consumption. It should be thrown away.
So how do we keep ourselves and our loved ones free
from harm? There are some simple rules which
everyone who handles chicken should follow:
Handling:
· Wash your hands thoroughly after handling raw
chicken and before handling anything else.
· Clean all surfaces used in the preparation
thoroughly and disinfect with neat vinegar.
· Use a separate cutting board for meat, especially
chicken.
· Do not re-use a marinade which has been used for
raw chicken
Storing:
· Store in the bottom shelf of the fridge at a
temperature of 4F or less
· Do not store cooked foods on the same shelf
· Store the chicken unwrapped but covered
· Do not let the chicken come into direct contact with
other food
De-frosting:
· Defrost frozen chicken in the fridge overnight
· Once defrosted, do not re-freeze
· If you use a microwave to defrost your chicken,
cook immediately
Cooking:
To be safe, chicken needs to reach and maintain an
internal temperature of 180F for at least 10 minutes.
Use a meat thermometer to help you determine this,
particularly when roasting a whole chicken.
Puncturing the thickest part of the thigh to see if the
juices run clear is not a reliable test of safety. Bacteria
and their toxins are completely invisible to the naked
eye.
With pieces such as chicken breasts, cut into the
centre of the meat and ensure that it is not pink in
color. Cooked chicken, whether white or dark meat, is
uniformly opaque and has a matt appearance. Chicken
meat that is shiny is undercooked.
And finally:
Please always bear in mind that bacteria such as
salmonella and campylobacter are invisible; you can't
see them, taste them or smell them. Yet they can
double in number every 20 minutes and billions of them
can infest a drop of moisture the size of a pinhead.
Simple rules of hygiene such as those set out above
will help to keep you safe.
Just remember that the upset tummy you experienced
last summer, or the fluey symptoms that came and
went in 24 hours or so, may well have been due to food
poisoning caused by bacterial activity.
So nothing to worry about really? Well, had you been
much younger or much older than you are now, the
consequences might have been very different. Why
take the chance?
