General Food Safety Strategies

During the holiday season many home kitchens work overtime. Family and friends gather, schedules get even more hectic, and many hands want to help. It's no wonder food safety practices are likely to fall by the wayside when a crowd gathers. But many of our holiday guests are at greater risk for food borne illness, namely: the elderly, children, and anyone with a weakened immune system or chronic illness, such as heart disease, diabetes, and HIV. No one wants to spoil a holiday celebration with food borne illness. So keep your family and friends safe with the following food safety strategies:

1. Check your refrigerator temperature. Use a thermometer to ensure your refrigerator holds foods safely--between 37 and 40 degrees F. Warmer temperatures allow harmful bacteria to thrive and foods to spoil. If you’ll be cooking for a crowd and are short on refrigerator space, fill a cooler or two with ice to handle extra items.

2. Thaw frozen meat and poultry safely in your refrigerator or under cold water in the sink. If you’re really pressed for time, microwave thawing is fastest, but make sure you finish cooking immediately after thawing. Defrosting any perishable food on the counter is dangerous because bacteria can thrive in the outer portions of the food before the inside thaws.

3. Wash hands with warm soapy water before and after handling food, as well as after using the toilet, diapering children, blowing your nose, playing with pets, etc.

4. Prevent cross-contamination. Keep raw meat and poultry and their drippings separate from other foods. Wash counters, cutting boards and knives before, during, and after food preparation. Use paper towels to wipe up meat and poultry drippings. Dish rags and sponges can soak up and spread bacteria throughout your kitchen.

5. Roast your holiday turkey in an oven set no lower than 325 degrees F. Avoid short-cut cooking methods that call for cooking the bird overnight.

6. Use a meat thermometer to ensure safety and quality. Your turkey is cooked to perfection when the thermometer inserted into the inner thigh--but not touching the bone--reads 180 degrees F., the breast reads 170 degrees F., and turkey juices run clear. Cooking dressing in a separate casserole dish is safest, but if you prefer to stuff your holiday bird, fill the cavity loosely and make sure the center of the stuffing reaches 165 degrees F.

7. Keep cold foods cold--below 40 degrees F., and hot foods hot--above 140 degrees. Use hot plates, chafing dishes and crock pots to keep hot holiday buffet foods at a safe temperature. Serve small quantities of perishable foods , such as meat, cheese and dips and refill as needed, or keep cold foods chilled by nesting dishes in bowls of ice.

8. Refrigerate or freeze leftovers within 2 hours of serving. Remove turkey from the carcass, and refrigerate in small, shallow, covered containers that protect quality and allow for rapid cooling.

9. Consume leftovers within a few days. Use your freezer for longer storage. Reheat leftovers to 165 degrees F. or until hot and steaming. Bring leftover gravy to a rolling boil before serving.

10. Clean up with a sanitizing solution of one teaspoon bleach added to one quart of water. Spray on washed counter tops, kitchen tables, and refrigerator door handles--the single dirtiest spot in a busy kitchen.

Safety measures: for prepared take-out foods

Softball league is at seven, your spouse is late, and you have less than an hour to get home and put dinner on the table. The solution? Hit the store for a roasted chicken, a bag of salad greens, and precut veggies. This scenario may sound familiar for a good reason: Nearly a third of Americans supplement their menu with prepared take-out meals at least once a week. These "home meal replacements" are great time-savers but, by definition, they've passed through several more hands than would meals made from scratch. With food safety a mounting concern, just how safe are convenience foods? It's a mixed grill out there. Pre-stuffed chicken breasts, already-skewered kabobs, and marinated meat and poultry vie for attention with precooked roasts and rotisserie chickens. As supermarkets respond to consumer needs, they're increasing their own lines of convenience items. "We rely on the individual market to provide safe handling of these products," observes Karen Penner, a Ph.D. food science specialist at Kansas State University.

Fully cooked meat and poultry items may be easy on your schedule, but they must be handled correctly to avoid recontamination or growth of harmful bacteria. "Although harmful and harmless bacteria may be destroyed initially, bacteria introduced by handling after cooking can thrive, especially without competing harmless bacteria. Moreover, the sniff test won't work here," Penner says. "Manufacturer- and store-cooked meats won't quickly develop off odors if mishandled." It comes down to the consumer taking responsibility and following directions, whatever the product,  If you follow the directions for reheating (and letting stand before serving) these products, you'll bring the serving temperature up to a safe 165 [degrees]."  The safe way to prepare uncooked, stuffed meats and poultry depends on the type of meat.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) suggests cooking beef and pork to 160 [degrees], ground poultry to 165 [degrees], whole chicken to 180 [degrees], and other poultry items and roasts to 170 [degrees]. Individual items, such as pre-stuffed chops and chicken breasts, should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 [degrees]. Using a meat thermometer, take the temperature at the center of the meat, making sure the thermometer tip doesn't touch bone. Follow preparation instructions on prepackaged items, and don't thaw frozen foods before cooking unless stated on the package. Sales of packaged salad greens exceed $1 billion annually. Despite a recent scare over bacteria in packaged salad mixes, the industry touts a clean slate with regard to food-borne illness. "Safety starts in the field," reports Robyn Sprague, of Fresh Express, Inc., "The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets guidelines for agricultural and manufacturing practices to help ensure safe-and-sanitary growing and handling conditions before prepared produce reaches the supermarket."  

Turkey Basics:
Safe Cooking Roasting Instructions

Set the oven temperature no lower than 325 °F. Preheating the oven is not necessary. 
Place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan.
For safety and uniform doneness of the turkey, cook stuffing separately in a casserole. Use a food thermometer to check that the internal temperature of the stuffing has reached 165 °F.
If you choose to stuff a turkey, you must use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of the turkey and the stuffing.
The temperature of a whole turkey must reach 180 °F in the innermost part of the thigh and the center of the stuffing must reach 165 °F.
If the stuffing has not reached 165 °F, continue cooking the turkey until the stuffing reaches
165 °F.
If the turkey has a "pop-up" temperature indicator, it is also recommended that a food thermometer be used to test in several places, including the innermost part of the thigh and the center of the stuffing.
When cooking only a turkey breast, the internal temperature should reach 170 °F.
Many factors can affect the roasting time of a whole turkey:

Note: Turkeys purchased stuffed and frozen with the USDA or state mark of inspection on the packaging are safe because they have been processed under controlled conditions.

These turkeys should not be thawed before cooking. Follow package directions for handling.