Home Food Safety Smarts

The recent listeria outbreak from cantaloupe brings to light the startling fact that many people are unaware of the proper way to store and prepare fruit—as well as other kinds of food.

Did you know you should wash your hands before and after handling cantaloupe? Not many people do. Did you know that cantaloupe should be washed immediately before using (but not prior) by rinsing and scrubbing it under water with a vegetable brush to ensure that soil is removed from the rind’s nooks and crannies? You might not.

It’s a good time to update our knowledge about home food safety. “Many of us learned food safety practices from our parents,” says Bethany Thayer, registered dietitian, director of wellness programs at Henry Ford Health System and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. “We know so much more now about food safety than 50 to 60 years ago.”

Here’s a quick quiz to jumpstart your food safety smarts. For more tips and resources, visit the food safety Web sites below.

Questions

1. To remove bacteria from raw chicken, rinse the chicken under cold water. T or F

2. The best type of cutting board to reduce bacterial contamination is wood. T or F

3. Frozen meat, poultry or seafood should be thawed in the refrigerator. T or F

4. It’s okay to marinate raw meat, poultry or seafood at room temperature because the acid in the marinade kills any bacteria. T or F

5. Leftovers should be left out to cool before putting them in the refrigerator so that the refrigerator doesn’t have to work too hard. T or F

Answers

1. False. Rinsing raw chicken will only spread the bacteria to the sink and countertops. The only way to kill bacteria is to cook food to the proper internal temperature.

2. False. Wood, glass or plastic cutting boards are fine as long as they are kept clean and sanitized. Use separate cutting boards for raw meat and other food such as produce and bread. Cutting boards should be discarded when they become worn or develop hard-to-clean grooves.

3. True. Thawing on the counter or in the sink, even under running water, means that the food is in the temperature “danger zone” (40°F-140°F) where bacteria multiply quickly.

4. False. Bacteria grow very quickly at room temperature and the acid does not adequately inhibit it.

5. False. Leftovers should be placed in appropriate storage containers and refrigerated immediately so that they do not stay in the temperature “danger zone” (40°F-140°F). Large amounts of leftovers should be divided into multiple small containers so they will cool faster in the refrigerator.

For more information:

Home Food Safety

Food Safety

Fight Bac

Kitchen Safety, Part 1: Fridge & Freezer Tips

Kitchen Safety, Part 2: Thawing Foods

Kitchen Safety, Part 3: When in Doubt, Throw it Out!