Health & Fitness
Food Safety 101: How To Prevent Food Poisoning
Jaime Palenque, executive chef at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center, shares useful food safety tips for grilling season.
This Patch article is sponsored by Banner Health.
Summertime is perfect for grilling, packing picnics and eating outside. The only downside to all this al fresco and on-the-go dining is that warmer weather presents plenty of opportunities for dangerous foodborne bacteria to appear, ruin your plans and put you and your loved ones at risk.
Find out what's happening in Across Arizonafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Fortunately, there are simple and practical precautions you can take to avoid getting sick. We asked Jaime Palenque, Executive Chef and Senior Manager of Culinary Services at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale, Arizona, to share some useful tips on how to prevent foodborne illness during barbecue season and beyond.
1. Avoid foods that spoil quickly.
Dangerous bacteria multiplies quickly when dairy products, seafood and egg-based items aren't properly refrigerated. Palenque recommends avoiding these fast-spoiling foods and highly perishable ingredients altogether when you're eating outdoors.
Find out what's happening in Across Arizonafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
"I would avoid anything that has mayonnaise if you're going outside," he says. "If you prepare a potato salad, substitute mayonnaise with an oil or vinaigrette."
"If you do make it with mayonnaise, you have to be very careful to keep it cold and keep it covered to ensure it's safe," he adds. "So, to me, it's much easier to use an oil or vinaigrette-based recipe."
2. Properly pack and transport meat.
Palenque emphasizes the importance of keeping meat cold before you cook it. To limit bacterial growth, any containers holding meat should be stored in a bath of ice. "And you need to make sure that the top of the meat is below the level of the ice, not above it," he says.
If you're packing uncooked foods to take to a picnic or outside event, Palenque recommends using dry ice instead of conventional cubed ice. It's not as messy, and it won't make your food soggy or wet.
3. Invest in a quality food thermometer.
A good meat thermometer is your best defense against food poisoning. The FDA guidelines for safe minimum internal temperatures are:
- Chicken: 165 degrees Fahrenheit
- Beef, pork, veal and lamb: 145 degrees Fahrenheit (with a 3-minute rest time)
- Ground meat: 160 degrees Fahrenheit
You really should adhere to these minimum temperatures if you want to avoid getting sick, even if your taste preferences are slightly different. For example, Palenque admits he loves a medium-rare burger, but the safest bet is to always cook hamburgers until they're well-done.
4. Avoid cross contamination.
Raw meat and poultry should be securely wrapped so that the juices can't leak and contaminate other foods. Palenque points out that precautions should be taken to pack different meats separately and securely as well.
"The chicken has to cook to a higher temperature so if the juices from the uncooked chicken drip onto the uncooked hamburger, now you've contaminated the beef," he explains.
5. Be smart about serving.
Wash your hands often, particularly after handling raw meats. If you don't have access to running water, the FDA recommends using a water jug and soap or bringing along some moist disposable towelettes.
Use caution to avoid cross-contamination with utensils and serving dishes. Never reuse a plate or utensils that have previously held raw meat, poultry, or seafood for serving unless they've been washed first with hot, soapy water.
Per FDA guidelines, cold, perishable foods should be kept in a cooler at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below until serving time. Once it's been served, cold food shouldn't sit out for more than two hours, or one hour if the temperature is above 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
Hot foods should be kept at 140 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. Just like with cold foods, they shouldn't sit out for more than two hours, or for more than one hour in temperatures above 90 degrees Fahrenheit.